The way back to me
by AngieJordaan
Summary: what would happen to Rose if her beloved bondmate died? After Lissa's death Rose starts to lose her mind. Dimitri tries to bring his old Roza back to him. Will he be able to? What about Christian?
1. Chapter 1

_Hey guys! i haven't written a fanfic in a while. This idea got me excited again._

 _Tell me what you think._

 _i own nothing but the plot, Richelle Mead is the amazing author._

CHAPTER 1

My life-plan has always been the same since I was four. The plan was to work hard in school and graduate, then I must be Lissa's guardian until my last breath. I was supposed to protect her with everything in me. She is my life's mission. But she is also my best friend.

My sister.

It isn't just an assignment to me. It is personal. She is the only family I have, and I am hers.

"Come on Rose, Guardian Belikov is waiting for us!" Lissa tugs on my arm to get my attention. I look at her and smile. Her excitement for shopping is contagious. I can't imagine my life without her. We walk to the SUV together. Dimitri is leaning against the car. I take a moment to appreciate him. It has been two weeks since our night in the cabin and the attack. I'm just so relieved that we both came back from the rescue mission. Dimitri almost didn't make it. The strigoi had him on his knees, luckily my mother was nearby. She attacked the strigoi and helped Dimitri to safety. Dimitri nods at us when we approach the car. Guardian Alto joins us a moment later.

"Good morning Princess, Rose. If we leave now, we will make it to the mall in two hours." Dimitri ushers us into the car and gets into the driver's side. Lissa pulls out her earphones from her bag and hands me one. The two-hour trip feels like thirty minutes while we listen to music.

"Okay Princess, we only have three hours then we need to head back." Lissa sighs but nods her head. We start the shopping immediately. Lissa has all the shop assistants on their toes. We got stuck in the _Mac_ store longer than we intended. We wanted to grab some make-up then get food and the leave, but Lissa and I couldn't decide on what make-up we wanted. I could see that Dimitri was getting tense. The sun had just started to set.

"Lissa, I think we should start heading out. We can skip the food." Dimitri nods at my suggestion but Lissa disagrees when my stomach gave a loud growl. I was well known for my large appetite.

"We can grab something small and eat it on the way home." Dimitri wanted to protest but nobody can say no to Lissa.

xxx

"That was the best burger ever." I said as I lick the remains off my fingers. McDonald's has always been my favourite. Lissa nods her head in agreement. We have been on the road for about ninety minutes. We were close to the academy, but Dimitri and Stan were on high alert. They didn't really plan on driving back in the dark. This felt like the night Dimitri brought us back to the academy.

"Something is not right." I hear Stan whisper to Dimitri. I guess I wasn't supposed to hear it, but I did, and I was worried. I grab Lissa's hand and squeeze it. she looks at me with wide eyes. She must have heard then to. The night is silent, maybe too silent. Dimitri must have hit something big because the car suddenly spins to the right. Dimitri tries to gain control of the car again, but it is useless. The car hits a lamp pole with a speed of 80km/h. I try to protect Lissa, but the sudden impact sends me flying to the front of the car. My head hit the windscreen hard. I'm surprised that I didn't black out. I look over at Dimitri. His face is nestled in the air-bag. Stan's head laid against the window and his eyes is closed. I feel a shaking hand on my leg. Lissa looks me dead in the eyes, she looks terrified. I look out the side window and see a pair of red eyes coming closer to the car. I shake Dimitri's shoulder as best as I can.

"There is a strigoi here, Dimitri!" He doesn't even make a sound. I reach into his side pocket and wiggle his stake out. The strigoi rips the back door off and reach for Lissa. My training takes over and I throw myself in front of her. The strigoi pulls me out of the car with lightning speed and throws me to the ground. He turns back to Lissa, but I jump onto his back. He is sloppy in his fighting. He looks like he is still a new strigoi and he was a human in his previous life. The strigoi caught me off guard and kicks me to the ground. My head feels heavy and I'm exhausted. He must have thought that I was to weak to fight. He turns back to Lissa again and I attack again. His facial features show his annoyance.

"Look who is the loyal little guardian." The strigoi grabs my left leg and bends it into an unnatural way. The sound of the bone snapping was louder than my screams. He turns back to the car and pulls Lissa out. She looks at me and I can see myself through her eyes. I look weak, scared and broken. Lissa knew that I would not be able to stop him. I just hope Dimitri or stan would wake up before it's to late. I bite through the pain and stand up.

"One more step and I will snap her neck." The strigoi warns me. I lick my lips and look around. Everything is so dark, there is no help coming.

"Please take me, kill me. Just leave her alone. If you want, you can awaken me." I beg. Lissa shakes her head. She is begging me mentally not to trade myself for her. But she is foolish if she thinks I will just let her die.

"Oh, you're a silly little girl. She is the last Dragomir and you, well you're just another dhampir." He laughs in my face. I tighten my grip on the stake and take a small step forward. He waves his finger at me. What is taking Dimitri and Stan so long to wake up. A siren sound in the distance distracts the strigoi for a split second, but that was all the time I needed. I jump at him again and tackle him and Lissa to the ground. He looks surprised for a second before he throws punches at me. I kick him off me and he hits the side of the SUV near Lissa. Stan struggles to open his door. He is awake. The strigoi calculated his odds in that moment. It's like I could see the decision he made as soon as he made it. He jumps at Lissa and I throw myself at him. But I was too late. I could see how he twists her neck. I could hear the snapping of bones. I could _feel_ the terrible pain she must have felt. Everything after that played off in slow motion. Stan finally got his door open and he staked the bastard that took my Lissa away from me. I crawl over to her cold body and hug her head to my chest. It took me a while to realize that I was screaming. Dimitri run towards me, his nose is bleeding, and his left eyes is swollen shut. He crouches next to me.

"Roza I'm here. Let me comfort you." I shake my head and continue screaming and rocking Lissa's cold body in my arms. Dimitri tries to take me into his arms, but I push him away.

"Leave me alone!" I guess he realized that he couldn't help me because he went to help someone else. Other guardians have arrived. After a few minutes I could feel a slight pinch in my neck and then the world around me went black.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hello guys. this story is coming in nicely. I do love reviews. Please review._

CHAPTER 2

A constant _BEEPING_ on my left side woke me up. I open my eyes but shut it immediately. The room is to bright and my eyes needs time to adjust.

"She is waking up." A voice I recognise all too well said. I open my eyes again slowly. My mother is the first person I see. Next to her is Dr Olendzki.

"Rose, it is so good to see that you are awake." Dr Olendzki takes a few steps towards me. She picks up a file at the foot of my bed and examines it.

"Why am I in the infirmary?" I ask them. Both woman look at me with wide eyes. My mother is the first one to gain control of her facial features. She clears her throat and sighs.

"Rose there was an accident. Do you remember it?" I shake my head. What accident? Is someone hurt? Where is Lissa or Dimitri.

"You, Princess Vasilisa, Guardian Alto and Guardian Belikov were in an accident on your way home from the mall. A strigoi planned the accident. Guardian Belikov and Alto were knocked out from the impact. You faced the strigoi all on your own, but it wasn't enough. He got to the Princess. She is…" Dr Olendzki cut my mother off. She glared a little at my mother.

"You did everything in your power, Rose. I'm so sorry. Lissa died." Her words repeated itself in my mind. Lissa is dead? My best friend, my sister, is dead. Dr Olendzki hands me a tissue. I must be crying. I wanted to reach for the tissue, but I have no energy in me. A scream escaped my lips. It felt as if my whole world was crashing down on me. The room grew smaller. It was getting hard to breathe.

"Leave!" I shriek. My mother looks at me with wide eyes again. Dr Olendzki ushers my mother out of the room. She gives me one last sorrowful look before she leaves to. This can not be happening. Lissa is not dead. I reach for the bond in my mind.

Darkness.

It feels as if I'm being blocked out. But it can't be that. If she was dead, then the bond would have disappeared completely. They must have their facts wrong. I can still feel the bond. Maybe she is just passed out. I need to see her. I pull the IV out of my arm and toss it to the floor.

"Rose! What are you doing?" I look up to see Dimitri coming towards me. His face is heavily bruised. His nose is broken, and his left eye is purple and swollen. Images of him with his face in an air-bag flashes in my mind.

"I need to see her, Dimitri. I need to see Lissa for myself." Dimitri tried to push me back down on the bed but gave up when he realised that his efforts are useless. One way or the other, I will get out of here today.

"Roza, she really is gone. I'm so sorry…"

"No! Take me to see her. Now!" I yell at him. Dimitri nods his head and turns to the door. I look around the room for my clothes, this hospital gown doesn't leave much to the imagination.

"Your clothes aren't here." Dimitri takes his duster off and gives it to me. I thank him and start to follow him. He leads me to the elevator on the far side of the infirmary. He presses the lowest bottom marked: morgue. Tears form in my eyes. Could she really be dead? But the bond, it isn't gone, not completely. Dimitri takes my right hand and laces his fingers through mine. The small contact makes me feel slightly better. I just wish I could remember the whole accident. It's like my mind was wiped clean.

"The last thing I can remember is standing in line at the McDonald's." I whisper to Dimitri. He looks at me with compassionate eyes. He let his guardian mask slip for time being. Showing me his emotion. He holds the morgue's door open for me to enter first. I have never been in a morgue. It looks just like it does in the movies. A wall with drawer fridges where they store the bodies. Two examination tables. A few scales and medical equipment. Dimitri walks to the middle of the fridge wall and opens the drawer in the middle. He pulls out the slide. The body in the drawer is covered by a white sheet. I walk towards it on shaking legs. She is not under that sheet. They made a mistake. My hand is shaking like crazy when I reach out to pull the cover off. I see Dimitri taking a few steps back.

"Oh no! No! Lissa!" I cry when I pull the sheet back. It's really her. She is dead. She is so pale. Her eyes are closed, and she has a slight smile on her lips. Even in death she is beautiful. I look at Dimitri. He is slightly blurry from the tears flowing out of my eyes.

"Can I have a minute? I- I have to say g-g-goodbye." I struggle to get the words past my lips. Dimitri walks to me and pulls me into his arms. I hug him tightly to my chest. His aftershave folds around me like a blanket. With a small kiss on my head, he turns and leaves me alone with Lissa.

I stroke her blond hair. She looks like she is just sleeping. Sleeping peacefully. I place a kiss onto her forehead. She is so cold. I slowly let my walls down and invite the ghost into the room. The headache that follows with the ghost starts to form immediately. I search the faces for Lissa. After a few minutes I see her coming towards me. Grief takes a hold of me instantly and sobs push through my body.

"Please don't leave me." I beg her ghostly form. Lissa's face shows her sadness unlike the other ghosts. I can see what Lissa is feeling, all I see on the other's faces is blankness. I take a few steps back and my back hits the wall. My legs choose that moment to give in and I slide down the wall to the floor, crying.

"Please Lissa, please come back to me. I can't do this on my own. I don't want to." I pull my hands through my hair. Lissa comes closer to me and bends down to look me in the eyes. A tear runs down her cheek.

"You can." Hearing her voice felt like a blessing to me. She has only been gone for two days but it feels like an eternity. I miss her voice. This is the first time a ghost has talked back. I remember with Mason it was like a fish trying to breathe out of water. I pull my knees to my chest and wrap my arms around my legs, trying to keep myself together.

"Please, Lissa. How do I live my life without you?" Lissa puts her hand on my cheek. But I couldn't feel anything.

"It will be okay." I can see that talking requires a massive amount of energy for her. Lissa looks back to where her body is. She looks so sad.

"I love you Rose." She strokes my cheek again and then she disappears. I search the room frantically. She can't be gone. I need more time. The ghosts start to crowd me. I reluctantly force my walls back up.

"No! I need more time." I cry. Dimitri runs into the room and bends down next to me. Unlike with Lissa, I can feel his arms around me, touching me. I grab his shirt and look him dead in the eyes.

"I need more time. I need more time with her." Dimitri pulls me to his chest and rocks me back and forth.

"She is in a better place now." I close my eyes and think about the accident willing myself to remember. A flash of images floods into my mind.

 _The car crashed into the pole._

 _Dimitri and Stan are out cold._

 _The strigoi pulled me out of the car._

 _We fought._

 _He broke Lissa's neck._

I push Dimitri away from me. He looks at me, confused.

"You didn't wake up!" I yell at him. He looks shocked at my outburst. I walk over to Lissa's body and cover her with the sheet. I turn back to Dimitri. He still looks shocked.

"It's your fault. Why didn't you walk up." I walk over to him and slam my fist on his chest.

"I'm sorry Roza. I know how you feel…"

"No, you don't. You will never understand. Just leave me alone." I run out of the morgue. All of this could have been prevented if Dimitri just woke up. Lissa would be here. All this pain I'm feeling could have been prevented.

This is his fault!


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry it took so long. But i need a little motivation. so if you like the story, please review and tell me what you like and dont like._

CHAPTER 3 

A loud knocking on my bedroom door woke me up. I throw one of my pillows at the door, hoping the knocking will go away. It didn't. I stand up and answer the door. I'm greeted by Christian. His face looks devastated, but he is dressed nicely in black formal shirt and trousers.

"What?" I snap. He blinks a few times before he pushes past me and enters my room.

"Why aren't you ready?" He asks. It's the funeral today. I was planning to just sleep the whole day away. I can't face the 'I'm sorry for your loss'. Not today. Christian opens my closet and pulls out the dress I had dry-cleaned for today. He pushes it into my hand and points at the bathroom.

"I don't want to go." I toss the dress on my bed and fold my arms over my chest. Christian walks over to me. He looks scary in this moment.

"This day is not for _you_. It is for Lissa and _she_ would want you there. So, stop your pity party, get dressed and meet me at the church in ten minutes." Christian tells me then walks out of my room, slamming the door on his way out. He is right. This day is for Lissa and she would want me there. Christian and I, we are the only family she has left. I pick up the dress and start to get ready.

xxx

"Glad you decided to join us." Christian says as I sit next to him in the front row of the church. I got a lot of sympathetic looks when I entered the church. Lissa's white casket sits open at the front of the room. They dressed her in a beautiful green gown. She looks like sleeping beauty, I just wish a kiss from Christian could wake her up. I look to the entrance of the church and see Dimitri walking in. it has been four days since I have seen him. Four days since our fight. Well it wasn't a fight, just me taking my anger out on him. I told him that he didn't know how I felt but after I thought about it, he did sort of know. He lost his best friend to.

Ivan.

The only difference between the two of us is that Lissa and I have a mental bond that links us to each other. He catches my eye and then looks away quickly. I haven't had the guts to talk to him. To apologise. It wasn't his fault. Well I'm still certain that if he had woken up, Lissa would be here, but the I blame Stan Alto as well. He was there to. Hell, he was awake when the strigoi killed Lissa. He is more to blame than Dimitri. But the hurt, anger and darkness made me blind to it all. I just wanted someone to blame and Dimitri happened to be in the room. I wish I could go over to him and just hug him. I could really do with a hug now.

"May I sit here?" Dimitri asks after he scanned the church a few times. I guess the only seat left is next to me. I nod my head at him and watch him sit down as far away from me as possible.

The priest taps on the microphone three times to get us to quite down.

"This is a very tragic day for all of us here at St. Vladimir Academy. Princess Vasilisa Sabina Rhea Dragomir was an exceptional young lady. She inspired so much good in the academy. The people who knew her, knew that she had a kind heart and a wonderful soul." I could feel the tears dripping from my chin. I'm trying to keep myself together, but it is so hard when half of me is missing. I shift my eyes an inch to the left and see that Christian is crying to. He is trying to hide it but is failing terribly. I grab the hand that is resting on his lap. He looks at me in shock but relaxes when he understands that I just want to support him.

"The loss of Vasilisa will be with us for a life time." That sentence couldn't be truer. Christian must share my thoughts because he squeezes my hand hard. He has let the tears flow freely now, just like I have. This day is heart-breaking, so that makes it okay to cry.

"Vasilisa only had a handful of people she considered true family and among them is Rose Hathaway and Christian Ozera. If either one of you would like to say a few words, the time to do so is now." I look over at Christian as the priest motions us to the podium. Christian lets out a breath and then stands up, still holding my hand. He looks at me pleadingly. He doesn't want to do this alone. I make my way to the podium with Christian by my side.

"You go first." Christian says and pushes me towards the microphone stand. I look at the church full people. Half of these idiots didn't know Lissa and a quarter of the other half liked to spread rumours about her. But now here they all are, crying at her funeral. They make me sick. Christian's words float to my mind.

 _This is for Lissa._

"As most of you know, Lissa wasn't just my best friend. We shared a bond that connected us in a way no one could even begin to understand." I look over at Dimitri. Asking for strength that only he could give me. He nods his head slightly as if he knew that I needed him now more than ever. He gave me a sad smile.

"I'm going to miss her terribly, but I know that she will always be with me in spirit. If I could go back in time and do things differently, I would. But like Lissa reminded me every time something bad happened. God works in strange ways, but he always has a reason." I walk over to her casket and stroke her cheek. This will be the last time I can see her physically. Dimitri touches my elbow softly and hands me a red rose. I place the rose in her hands and blow her a kiss. I turn to go back to my seat, but Christian grabs my hand and pulls me towards him. I watch as Dimitri sits down. He is looking at me with only one emotion on his face: love. He may still be upset with me about what I said, but he will always love me to no end. Christian lets go of my hand when he is sure that I won't go back to my seat. He takes out a ring box from his pocket and holds it tightly in his hands.

"Lissa was the first person who saw me as Christian Ozera, a fire user with a dark past but a good heart. She didn't see me as Christian Ozera, the wanna be strigoi. She loved me, and I love her. Before my mother turned into a strigoi, she gave me her wedding ring and told me to give it to the girl I love most in the world. And that girl is Lissa." He puts the ring box in Lissa's hand with the rose I gave her.

"You will live on in my heart now, my sweet girl." Christian looks at me, then nods. I take his hand and lead him back to our seats. Dimitri takes my other hand in his as the service goes on.

xxx

"Would it look bad if I just walked out of here?" Christian asks me as we watch the rest of the people grab food from the buffet table Alberta has set up for the wake.

"I wouldn't know because I would be right behind you. These people irritate me. I mean, just look at Jesse." I point in the direction of that idiot, who is crying and getting comforted by some girl.

"He and Lissa couldn't stand each other but here he is, crying like he was her best friend. Half of these idiots didn't even know who the real Lissa was. They just knew the Princess." Christian nods his head in agreement. Apart from us, there is only a handful of people who knew her enough to cry at her funeral. I scan the crowd and my eyes land on Eddie. He and Mia are sitting in the back corner, they both look heart broken. Next, I seek out Adrian. He is drunk as usual. Sitting at a table near the buffet and drinking from his flask. Silent tears roll from his eyes.

"Everyone would have liked to have known her as well as you two did." I turn around and look at Dimitri. He is right. Most of these people would have moved mountains to be Lissa's friend. She was a great friend to have.

"They're idiots." I say and turn back to look at them. Jesse has moved on to another girl. He is really milking this whole 'I'm actually a sensitive guy' role he has adapted for the funeral and these girls are just eating it up.

"That's it. I'm going to teach Jesse a lesson." I take a step into his direction, but a hand around my wrist stops me. I glare at Dimitri, but he just shakes his head. he wants me to see that Jesse isn't worth it, and he is right. Jesse is just a low life piece of monkey hair.

"Christian, I'm so sorry." I turn to see Tasha hugging Christian. I didn't even know she was here. Well, it makes sense. She and Lissa grew fond of each other. She turns to me when she lets Christian go.

"I wish I knew what to say to make you feel better, but there are no words." She wraps her arms around my neck. I return her hug and I thank her. She is right. No words would make me feel better. Except maybe that all of this was just a dream and that Lissa is safe and alive.

xxx

"Christian wanted me to tell you that he and Tasha left." Dimitri touches my elbow again to get my attention. I look at him and nod.

"Would it look bad if I left to?" I ask, and Dimitri shakes his head.

"Dimitri, can we please go somewhere to talk?" Dimitri nods his head and start to walk away. I take that as my cue and follow him.

 _Please review guys._


	4. Chapter 4

_Sorry for the long wait. Here it is and i hope you enjoy it._

CHAPTER 4

I follow Dimitri out of the church and into the gym. He leads me to one of the old storage closets in the back. Almost no one comes into this one anymore. All the old, broken training equipment is stored in here. I fold my arms over my chest when he looks at me. His eyes are mesmerizing as he gazes at me with love and concern. I wish I could just wrap my arms around him and hold him and never let him go.

"How are…"

"About what I…"

We both start to talk at the same time. Dimitri motions for me to continue.

"About what I said in the morgue. I'm sorry. I didn't think, and I was angry, and the darkness washed over me in a huge wave of grief. It slipped my mind that, in a way, you do know how I feel. You lost your best friend to." Dimitri places his hand on my shoulder. Understanding washes over his face. He knows how hard I must fight against the darkness and how easily it can over take me. He knows because he saved me from it a while back.

"I understand Rose. At first, your words upset me but then I saw it in your eyes. That darkness that chews at your mind, I knew that you didn't mean what you said." I sit down on an old weights bench and put my head in my hands. Sometimes it scares me at how well Dimitri knows me. He doesn't need me to explain things, he understands. He crouches down in front of me and takes my hands away from my face.

"Lissa's death is going to hit you harder that anyone who knew her because she was a part of you just like you were a part of her. You will feel the loss of her stronger that anyone every day, but just remember, I will always be here for you." Dimitri runs the back of his hand down my cheek. His touch sends a spark of electricity through my face. He understands me because he is also a part of me. If I ever lose him, I would fall apart.

"Thank you for understanding. I just feel so alone. Lissa was always there when I needed someone and now she is just gone." Dimitri stands up and pulls me up with him. His arms wrap around my shoulders and he hug me tight.

"You will never be alone, Roza. Not while I'm still breathing." I look up at him.

"Please don't ever stop breathing. Not until I'm dead. I wouldn't be able to go on if you died to." Dimitri stokes my cheek again.

"I wish I could promise you that. But I just cannot. I will try." I rest my head on his chest again. He is right, with him here, I will never be alone. But what he doesn't get is that he can't be with me all the time. And it's when he is not around, that is when the darkness tries to drag me down. He is the light in my life that keeps the darkness away. Just like I was with Lissa. But he doesn't absorb it like I did, no, he makes it disappear completely. Until he goes away.

"I have to go now. I have a late shift tonight. I will see you tomorrow." Dimitri leans down and places a soft kiss on my lips. He pulls away to soon, but I have learned to be happy with what I get. He turns towards the door with my hand still in his. I can feel his hand is starting to pull away. He gives me one last look before he lets go of my hand and leaves the storage room.

xxx

I walk into the cafeteria and attract the attention of every soul in the room. Eyes filled with sympathy stare at me as I walk to the line to get food. I scan the area and see my friends sitting at our usual table. Adrian gives me a small wave when my eyes land on him. Eddie pushes the food around on his plate and Mia is just staring at Eddie. I scan the cafeteria once more for Christian. He wasn't here for lunch this afternoon and now he is skipping dinner. I grab two of everything and walk over to my friends.

"I'm going to fine Christian and take him something to eat. I will see you guys tomorrow." They wave at me as I walk out of the cafeteria. I walk all the way to the church and go in. The Priest greets me at the door.

"Ms Hathaway, you know food is not allowed in the church." I give him my best puppy-dog face.

"Just this once please. Christian won't come and get dinner, so I thought I could bring dinner to him." The Priest nods his head and points at the attic. I thank him and make my way to Christian. I find him standing by a small coloured window, the window that helped form the love between him and Lissa. She used this attic as her quite place when the royal life got to much and Christian did the same. They met here, and they spend most of their time here.

"You have to eat. She wouldn't want us to starve just because we miss her." He turns around and glares at me. I place the trays on the small table next to me and walk over to him.

"How can you eat at a time like this?" He asks me. I look at him with both my eyebrows up.

"A time like what? She is dead, Christian. She isn't coming back. But we need to continue living, that is what she would have wanted. Like you…" I could feel a small wave of emotions run through my mind. Emotions that weren't mine. It was gone as fast as it came, but I felt it. I could still feel Lissa. I wasn't alone after all. Christian looks at me, waiting for me to continue what I was saying. What was I saying? My mind just can't focus on anything now. I can feel her. Maybe if I tried hard enough, I can see her, talk to her.

"I have to go, eat your food." I point at one of the trays before I leave.

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	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

I dodge patrol guardians as I run to where the wards began. I learned with Mason that I can see the ghosts better when I'm not in the protection of the wards. I sit down on a boulder that is about ten feet away from the wards. Just because the sun is going to come up in two hours doesn't mean I'm totally safe out here. I close my eyes and picture Lissa. Laughing, smiling, talking, happy. I open my eyes, expecting to see her standing in front of me but get nothing. Just the dead silence of the early morning hours. I try again, harder.

"Your brain is going to fry if you concentrate any harder." I hear Lissa giggle and open my eyes. She is here. She gives me a small smile and a wave. I stand up and walk closer to her. She is slightly transparent, but I can see her clear enough. The wind plays with her blond locks, making her look even more perfect. I always envied her natural beauty. I mean, yeah, I'm pretty, but I always felt dull next to her.

"Liss, I knew you weren't completely gone. I can still feel you." Lissa shakes her head. She looks… disappointed.

"Rose, this is not healthy. You need to move on from me. I'm in a happy place now. I'm with my family." She doesn't want to see me? But I can't function properly without her.

"But Liss, I need you. Christian needs you. I should have…"

"Rose, there was nothing you could have done. I will always be with you, but you need to stop blaming yourself. I worry about you. And please, take care of Christian now." Lissa starts to flicker, like she wants to leave.

"Please Lissa, wait. I just need to see you. The darkness, it's growing stronger and I just can't…" I stop as a sob escapes my throat. Lissa takes a small step towards me.

"Okay Rose. How about we meet here everyday at the same time. Just until you get control of everything." I nod my head ferociously.

"Don't be late Rose." Lissa gives me a radiant smile and turns around.

"I promise." I say just before she disappears. Knowing what I know now. I will never be alone. Dimitri will keep the darkness at bay and Lissa will keep the loneliness away. I wish Christian could see Lissa to. it would really help him heal. I feel better just after this one visit. Things will be better now. With Lissa still here, nothing could go wrong.

"Rose? What are you doing out here?" I turn around to see Dimitri walking towards me. Damn, he is on duty tonight. I should have been more careful. If I tell him what I'm doing here, he would just think I'm losing my mind. He would want to 'help' by sending me to see the school's therapist as if I tell her what is happening, she will just put me on anti-depressants and tell me that I'm not handling the loss very well. No, I can't tell anyone. This is my little secret, mine and Lissa's.

"To be honest, I got a little lost. I wanted to go to the cabin. I just needed to be alone and to think." Dimitri cocks his head to the side and gives me his Do-You-Think-I'm-Stupid look. Damn, I should have known he wouldn't have fallen for that one. I could make my way to that cabin drunk and blindfolded.

"Okay, okay. Even I don't believe that excuse. I was just walking in the woods and I thought I saw something out here. I wanted to check it out before I called someone." I try my hardest to look him straight in the eyes. He once told me that when I lie, I just can't look him in the eyes and I play with the edge of my shirt.

"And?" He is still a bit sceptic about my excuse. I wave my hands around me.

"Well, you can see for yourself. There is absolutely _nothing_ out here." I may have put a little too much emphasis on the 'nothing' part. He considered my words for a few seconds before he stretches out his hand. I look at him and then at his hand. Does he want me to take it? is this just his way of showing me to start walking? This man confuses me so much.

"I won't bite Roza." He gives me a half smile. He wants me to take his hand. I grab the opportunity before he can rethink it. I lace my fingers with his.

"What do you think you saw?" He asks me after a few minutes of walking. I shrug and kick at a small stone in front of me.

"It just looked like a shadow. Maybe it was a shadow of a guardian, I don't know." Dimitri nods his head. he seems deep in though. I hope he bought my story. I know how sceptic he was about me seeing Mason. Even after the rescue mission, he still told me he thought that I had more of a hunch than seeing a ghost. I can't blame him. For some people it's a seeing is believing thing. I know Dimitri believes in God even if he can't see Him and I know Dimitri likes to believe in miracles, but ghosts? That may be a little far fetched for him. He is very supportive though. If I told him I can see Lissa he would probably say he believed me, but he still would make me see the therapist. He would say it will help me shut her out. But I don't want to shut her out. She isn't hurting me like the other ghosts.

"Guardian Belikov, where are you now. Over." Stan Alto's voice came over Dimitri's radio. He let go of my hand to take it off his belt.

"I'm assisting a student back to the dorms, Guardian Alto. Over." The Dhampir dorms is only a short walk from where we are now.

"I need your help near the old gate. Come quickly. Over and out." Dimitri hooks the radio back on to his belt and looks at me.

"I'm a big girl, Guardian Belikov. I can make my way to the dorm. Thank you very much." I wink at Dimitri and turn in the direction of the dorm-building. I hear his soft laugh as I start to walk.

xxx

I make my way to the cafeteria after my morning practise with Dimitri. I woke up in a good mood this morning and I would like to keep it that way. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I saw Lissa last night or that I'm seeing her again in nine hours.

"Little Dhampir, you look very radiant this morning." Adrian joins me just as I enter the cafeteria. He throws his arm around my shoulder and for once, I can't smell alcohol or cigarettes on him.

"Well I feel radiant this morning so." I shrug his arm off as I grab a tray and load it with food. We walk to the table and I'm happy to see Christian sitting next to Eddie. I leave the chair next to him open and sit down on the next chair. The seat between him and me will always be Lissa's. Nobody will ever get the right to sit there. Mia speed walks to our table and crashes down in the seat on Eddie's other side. She is bouncing with excitement.

"Guys and Rose, did you hear the news?" Mia scans our faces with wide eyes.

"St. Vlad's has a new student."

 _Okay guys... i have a favour to ask. i need a name for the new student. its a girl. and she is moroi. please a shout out will go to the name i choose. the second i get a name, i will post the next chapter._


	6. Chapter 6

_Thank you to all that gave me names..._

 ** _Passainte, you rock and i hope you enjoy this story._**

 _i hope i can create more oppertunities for you guys to help out with the story._

CHAPTER 6

I raise my eyebrows at Mia. Why would this news be so interesting? St. Vlad's gets new student every year. I get that it is only three months before graduation…

Graduation.

Lissa will never graduate. She will never go to the collage of her dreams. She will never achieve the things she wanted to. she will never regrow the Dragomir line like she wanted to. Oh, Lissa would have made a great mother and she wanted a big family to. I would trade places with her in a heartbeat just to make all her dreams come true.

"A new student in her senior year. She is a moroi. Her name is Kira Valentine." Not a royal. That is strange. Normally, if a non-royal wanted to enter a school this late in the year. They were told to wait until the year is over and enter in the beginning. Only royals got special treatment like that.

"She just arrived this morning. Apparently, her parents left her for dead when she was just born, and this guardian couple found her and raised her." All of us look up as the cafeteria doors open and the new moroi student walks in. I nearly fell off my chair when I got a good look at her. She looks so much like Lissa. She has a little extra weight and muscle on her than a moroi should, maybe because she was raised by dhampirs. Her hair is a darker shade of blond than Lissa's was and she has red highlights in. Her facial features could have been a copy of Lissa's and her eyes, it felt like I was staring right into Lissa's eyes. A wave of disgust crashes in my brain. Lissa clearly doesn't like her so I'm going to do my best friend a favour and stay as far away from this girl as possible.

"Could Novice Hathaway, Lord Ozera, Novice Castile and Kira Valentine please report to the Headmistress's office. Immediately." Kirova's secretary's voice rings loudly in the cafeteria. Kira puts down the tray she was holding and leaves the same way she came in. I wonder what the she-devil wants now.

xxx

"Please have a seat." Kirova says with a broad, fake smile to the moroi. Christian and Kira sit on the chairs in front of Kirova's table. Eddie and I stand behind Christian's chair. Kirova pushes her round glasses up her nose.

"Now, as you all know, the field experiment continues as of tomorrow and because of recent events, Novice Castile, you do not have a moroi to guard." Shame, poor Eddie. He gets stuck with the new girl. He is already in such a bad space because of Lissa's death and now he would not be around us as often. He blames himself for Lissa's death. He feels that he should have been with us because he was her temporary guardian. But he was still healing. After the rescue mission, Eddie has a hard time focusing. The kidnapping hit him hard.

"The reason why you are here, Rosemarie, is because you will be reassigned to be Kira Valentine's Guardian and Castile will take over Lord Ozera." My mouth nearly hit the ground.

"Why?" It was out of my mouth before I could stop it. I really wish the filter between my mouth and brain worked sometimes but then on other occasions, I like that it doesn't work. Well now was not one of those occasions. Kirova glares at me for only a second before she is all smiles again, for the moroi's sake.

"You have to be Ms Valentine's guardian on special request from the Queen. We do not ask questions when our Queen gives a request. I expect that all your belongings will be moved to her room before curfew tonight, same for you Castile. You may leave." Eddie and Christian give me looks of sympathy as the leave to do their own things. I wait a few seconds for Kira to come out.

"Oh hi, your going to be my guardian for the next five weeks. It's nice to meet you. Rosemarie, right?" I shake Kira's stretched out hand.

"Technically, yes, but I like to be called Rose. Do you have any preferences?" We start to walk, I have no idea where we are going, but I just follow her.

"I like to be called Kiki. But whatever floats your boat." She gives a nervous laugh.

"I think Kira will be fine. Then I will see you later to move my things. What dorm number do you live in?"

"Oh, I don't live in the dorms. I live in unit 9." I freeze on the spot. Unit 9 was Lissa's room. Units are like small apartments given to only the highest royalty. Why did she get a unit? Why did she get Lissa's unit? I know of three open units on the campus. Why would they give Lissa's one away so soon? All Lissa's things must still be there.

"I have to go." I head to the only person who could give me a straight answer.

xxx

"Little Dhampir, what a nice surprise. I was just about to go for a walk, join me?" Adrian holds out his arm for me to take. I link my arm with his and we start to walk. Oaky I know I said I was going to the only person who could give me a straight answer but when I saw Dimitri out side the gym, he had company. Looks like Tasha hasn't left yet. They were laughing, and she would touch his arm every now and then and I just couldn't deal with that. So, I turned to the alternative. Adrian couldn't give me the answers I was looking for, but he could drag my attention away from things if he tried hard enough. And now I just need a distraction.

"I heard that you are going to be that new student's guardian for the field test." Okay maybe he didn't want to distract me today, maybe he just wanted me to have a full break down by just hearing her name. The same wave of disgust rolls over me. What is Lissa's problem with this chick. I mean, yeah, I don't like her because she has Lissa's room and she kind of looks like her, but this feeling is almost as strong as hatred. This girl rubs Lissa up the wrong way. But wait, does that mean that Lissa can see life through my eyes now?

"Sore subject, I came to you because I need a distraction. Take my mind off it." I beg him. Adrian nods his head and he looks deep in thought.

"Okay before I become fun Adrian, I have to ask you, is there anything you want to talk about? About Lissa? Or about how you are feeling?" I'm tempted to tell him that I can still feel her but decide against it. What if he thinks I'm going crazy? But this need inside me to tell someone is burning so bright. I just need someone I can talk to. Maybe I will tell him, just not now.

"No, but later. When my mind can sort out the mess of thought I have, I will come to your room and talk about everything that is going on up here." I tap my finger against my head. Adrian smiles at me for a short while and taps the same spot I did.

"Such a pretty head." For the first time in a while I laugh. Adrian's carefree attitude rubs off on me sometimes. I rest my head against his shoulder. I still can't smell any alcohol or cigarettes on him. Only his aftershave and it smells nice. Nothing like Dimitri's, but it's a close second.

"I haven't smelled smoke or booze on you for the whole morning. Why?" Adrian strokes my arm that is linked with his. We probably look like an only married couple.

"Well, this is going to sound insane, but I trust you. The night of Lissa's funeral. I was drunk and walking dangerously close to the wards. I felt like someone was watching me and when I look up, I saw Lissa. She told me that I needed to be here for you now and I could not do that if I was drunk. So, I stopped, for you." Adrian puts both his hands on my face and looks me in the eyes.

"I know you will never love me the way you love Belikov and I have accepted that. But just remember, I will always be here when you need me." A few tears fall from my eyes, but Adrian wipes them away. I reach up and kiss his cheek, then I wrap my arms around his neck and hold him tight.

"Looks like cuddle time is over. The Russian Warlord is coming our way." Adrian and I release each other just before Dimitri joins us.

"Guardian Belikov, to what do we owe the pleasure of your company for?" Adrian gives Dimitri a slight bow, in a mocking way, and I try my hardest to hold my laughter in. Dimitri has a look of pure disapproval on his face.

"I'm not here for you Lord Ivashkov. Rose, I saw you earlier while I was talking to Tasha, but you didn't come to join us. Is something wrong?" Dimitri asks me, and I shake my head.

"Ah, I see." Adrian laughs and shakes his head. I roll my eyes at him. That was not the reason I needed a distraction. Dimitri glares at Adrian, but Adrian continues like Dimitri isn't even here.

"Well, I will be off. And Rose, I will have a pint of ice cream with your name on it for when we have the feelings talk." I wave at Adrian as he makes his way back to him room. Dimitri is staring at me like I have two heads.

"What is he talking about?"

"Adrian just told me that if I ever need to talk about how I'm feeling, I can talk to him." Dimitri turns his glare on me now.

"Sorry, that role is taken. If you want to talk, you talk to me. Adrian is not your boyfriend."

"And what? You are?" I ask. Again, I wish the filter could just work.

"Yes." Dimitri doesn't hesitate to answer. I inhale a big gulp of air. We have never really talked about what we are. I mean, can you even say we are in a relationship?

"Well, I was unaware of that." I couldn't think of anything better to say. Dimitri looks at his watch then back at me.

"Meet me at the cabin at two." Two in the morning for humans. That is the time I need to see Lissa. Damn it.

"Can't it be at three? Please." Dimitri nods his head.

"Okay, and wear something pretty." Dimitri winks at me and walks away. Leaving me standing with my mouth open. Never a dull moment with him.

 _What did you think?_


	7. Chapter 7

_Sorry for the long wait but here it is. Tell me what you think._

CHAPTER 7

'Wear something pretty' That could mean a lot of things. Something pretty for bed? Something pretty for a date? I scan through my closet for the sixth time. Most of my clothes are work out attire. I'm not equipped for this type of thing. I have one drop dead sexy bra and panty. But that is it. Dimitri burned one of the two dresses I own and the other one is the one I wore to the funeral. If Lissa was here, she would have had a dress for me. It's strange that I could still fit into her clothes even though she is smaller than me. Sometimes she bought clothes a size to big just to give it to me. I jump slightly at the sudden knock on my door.

"Christian? What are you doing here?" I ask surprized. He enters my room, carrying a large suitcase and my old duffle bag with him. My name is written on a piece of paper that is stuck onto the suitcase.

"Well, I wanted to bring your bag to you. Eddie is moving his things into my room now. And this morning, a guardian came to my room and dropped this off." He points to the suitcase. The hand writing looks like Lissa's

"Apparently, this was in Lissa's room. They cleaned it out for the new girl." I roll my eyes at this.

"Where is the rest of her stuff?" I ask.

"Alberta said that they put it in a storage unit. When we are ready, you and I need to go through it and decide what we want to keep, and the rest will go to charity." I thank him and watch him leave my room. I look at the wall-clock. I must be with Lissa in thirty minutes. I open the suitcase because my curiosity is too strong to ignore. Clothes nearly jump out as I open the suitcase. I look at the dress on top of the pile. Its price tag is still on and it's in my size. She has done it again. Even in death, she still looks out for me. I find a beautiful red dress at the bottom of the pile. It's knee length and has a high neckline with an open back. A unique design out of lace covers the dress. I pair the dress with black wedges and pearl ear-rings. I pin my hair up and let small locks frame my face. Dimitri loves my hair and he told me a while ago that I should never cut it. I apply light make-up, some mascara and eyeliner and a thin layer of foundation. More is less in some cases. I grab the only jacket I own and leave to go and meet Lissa.

Xxx

"Why are you so dressed up?" Lissa asks from behind me. I spin around to see her smiling face. I never got to tell her about Dimitri. I planned to do it after the rescue mission, but I never got the right time. Alberta always told me that there is no such thing as the right time, just time that you must make right. I thought that she was on some crazy pills at the time, but now I understand the truth of her words. I should have made time to tell her.

"I guess you can say I'm going on a date." Lissa looks intrigued. Well this is it. Better late than never I guess.

"With Dimitri."

Lissa's eyes nearly pops out of her head. She opens her mouth then closes it again. She kind of looks like a fish out of water. I don't need the bond to know that she is shocked, I can see it on her face. But wait. I can't feel it, I can't feel her shock like I normally can.

"Are you blocking me out?" I ask. Lissa raises her eyebrows in a confused manner.

"The bond. I can't feel your emotions."

"Rose, when I died, the bond went away." I shake my head.

"No, it didn't. If it did, then how can I see you now. And I feel emotions that aren't mine." Lissa bites her thumb nail as she thinks. She always did it when a difficult situation stood before her.

"What type of emotions?" I think over the last few days again. First, I felt sadness when I was with Christian in the church and then I felt disgust around the new girl, twice.

"It wasn't very happy emotions Liss. I felt this sadness when I was with Christian in the attic and then a wave of disgust came twice when I was with the new girl." Lissa cocks her head to the side.

"What new girl?" I start to pace in front of her.

"The new girl. She kind of looks like you. And I get the feeling that you don't like her." Lissa shakes her head gently.

"Rose, I have no idea what you're talking about. It's not my emotions you're feeling."

"Then who's is it?" I ask her. She shrugs her shoulders.

"I don't know. Maybe it's your own that is just buried deep inside you. You could feel sadness for Christian because he also lost me, and you could feel disgust towards the new girl because she looks like me." I stop pacing and look at her. She could be right. Last night she told me that she was in a happy place. With her family. She would have no reason to feel sad or disgusted.

"You said you are in a happy place? Why are you here then?"

"Because you need me. But I cannot be here for long. It takes a lot of energy and when I can see that you are better, I'm going to stop coming. Then I will wait for you in heaven." I scoff. She really thinks I'm going to heaven. I never really thought about that. Maybe I need to start going to church, just to secure my place with her where she is now.

"You are good Rose, and we will be together in the end. Now let's go back to Guardian Belikov. Since when did that happen?" I give her the history of our relationship. When the feelings started to happen, when we realised that it will not go away and I tell her about the night in the cabin. She listens to every word I say.

"I wish you told me this earlier, but I am very happy for you Rose. Maybe he can help you get better. You need to get better. Please for me." I'm fine, there is nothing wrong with me. I'm handling everything fine. I want to tell her all that but just nod my head instead. Lissa gives me one last smile before she disappears.

Xxx

I hesitate only a second before I knock on the cabin's door. I hear shuffling inside and then Tasha Ozera opens the door. Her hair looks rather messy and her lips are swollen, like she has been kissed violently

"Rose? What are you doing here?" Dimitri appears behind her, his eyes is wide, and, like Tasha, his hair is messy. That can only mean one thing. They must have been kissing. Dimitri's shirt is wrinkled, and the first button is open. There must be a rational, logical explanation to this. He would never do that to me. Or would he?

 _How well do you really know him Rose?_

I hear Lissa's voice in my head. She is right. I don't really know him well. Heck, I don't even know his favourite colour.

"Rose, you should not be out here this late." How dare he try that crap with me. He told me to come here. Did he do that just to make a fool out of me in front of Tasha? Is this his way of showing me that he wants her? But he said that he was my boyfriend.

"Tasha, I didn't know you were staying in the cabin, Christian said you were in guest housing." I try my hardest to keep my voice calm and friendly. I would really like to tear her pretty hair out and shove it down Dimitri's throat, but we don't always get what we want.

"I do, but I forgot some of my stuff here from the last visit." Dimitri steps out of the cabin. His aftershave hits me like a train and it makes me want to cry. How can he cheat on me? Now? After everything I have been through.

"I will have to escort Rose to her room, have a nice night Tasha." Dimitri takes a step towards me and I take a step back.

"I was actually going to meet Adrian here, but it looks like he bailed on me. I will just go check in his room. you can stay Guardian Belikov. I didn't mean to interrupt." I turn my back on them before Dimitri can say a thing. I hear vaguely how Tasha invites him for a coffee.


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

I knock on Adrian's door with a lot of force. Adrian looks sleepy and frightened at the same time when he opens the door.

"Oh Rose, it's only you. I thought a bunch of guardians wanted to skin me alive when I heard the slamming on my door." I ignore his joke and push past him to get into his room. I walk over to his fridge and take out a small bottle of vodka. Adrian hands me a glass with ice and watches me throw the vodka in. I down my glass in two big gulps and refill it.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Adrian asks as I sit down on his bed. I pull my wedges from my feet and throw it to the door.

"You look stunning by the way. Did you dress up for me?" I glare at him and take another sip of the vodka. It burns as it travels down my throat, but it feels good now.

"He is cheating on me." I gulp down the last of the glass and hold it out to Adrian to refill it. He does as I want and hands me back the glass.

"Who? Dimitri?" Adrian sits down next to me. I glare at him.

"Who else?" I bring the glass to my mouth again, but Adrian takes it out of my hands.

"Rose, I don't think he would do that. His aura lights up with gold and pink when he sees you. Gold is love and pink is admiration." I grab the glass back from Adrian and guzzle it all down.

"I saw him with Tasha. We were supposed to have a date tonight in that old cabin. When I got there, he pretended that I shouldn't be there, and he and Tasha looked like they had a rough make out session." Adrian put his hand around my shoulder. I look at him and for the first time, I admire his handsome face. His emerald eyes shine with love as he looks back at me. Why couldn't I just love him?

 _Maybe you can!_

Lissa's voice appears in my head again. I lean in and place my lips on his. His lips are soft and moist. Adrian is hesitant at first but after a few seconds he kisses me back. His hand tangles in my hair and when I reach up to do the same, I freeze. He doesn't have long hair like Dimitri. Because he is not Dimitri. I pull away from him and jump off the bed.

"I'm sorry Adrian. That was wrong of me." I grab my shoes from the door and run out of his room. I use my stealth mode to sneak past guardians until I reach my room. I find Dimitri standing in front of my door with a dozen black pearl amaryllises. My favourite flowers. It looks like the roles have been reversed. Now Dimitri is taking in my appearance. Smeared lipstick and messy hair.

"Rose, wait. The kiss…" I didn't even notice that Adrian followed me until he spoke, but he stopped when he saw Dimitri. I look at Adrian to see that he looks like me. My lipstick is on his mouth and his hair is messier than normal. Dimitri has murder written all over his face. He drops the flowers on the floor and turns away from us.

"I will talk to you tomorrow." I leave Adrian standing in the hall as I run after Dimitri. He is heading straight for the gym and he is ignoring me when I call his name.

"Please, it's not…"

"Do not say that it is not what I think it is." Dimitri still has his back to me when we enter the gym. I put my hand on his shoulder, but he just shrugs it off. I walk around to face him. His eyes show his hurt and betrayal. He doesn't even bother to put up his guardian mask.

"Why Roza?" He asks me. I can even hear the hurt in his voice. I look down to the floor.

"I guess I wanted to get back at you for doing it to me first. I saw you with Tasha."

"Nothing happened with Tasha. Do you really think I would do anything with her when I'm so obviously in love with you." His words pull on my heart. I look up into his eyes.

"But, I saw how you looked. Your hair is a mess and your shirt, it's wrinkled, and the top button is open. And Tasha looks like she had a heavy make out session." My voice sounds small even to my own ears. Dimitri looks at me like I'm a naughty child. I hate it when he looks at me like this. It just shows me that he thinks I'm immature. Maybe I am sometimes. Maybe we are to different to be together.

No.

We fit together like puzzle pieces. We were made for each other. I'm sure of it.

"I went to the cabin to set it up for our date, but there were two bats in the cabin. One of the windows was open. I tried to get them out, but they kept flying towards me and in my hair. Then Tasha came into the cabin." Dimitri rubs the back of his neck and closes his eyes.

"I don't know what she was doing before that. She helped me to get the bats out. I send you a text message, telling you to stay in your room because Tasha was in the cabin. But then you showed up. You really think I would betray you like that. Like you did to me." I should have never doubted him. Of course, he wouldn't cheat on me.

"I didn't mean for it to…"

"Save it Rose. You smell of alcohol. Go to your room and sleep it off. We can maybe talk tomorrow." I start to protest, But Dimitri holds up his hand.

"That was a command from your mentor and you will not disobey it." Dimitri slams on his guardian mask and his mentor voice. No matter what I do, he will not budge now. I walk to my room with my tail between my legs. I pick up the flowers from the floor and enter my room. everything is dark, as dark as my heart feels.

 _He is never going to forgive you. This hurt your feeling can go away, with just one cut. I used to do it, it made me feel better._

Lissa is encouraging me to cut myself. She wouldn't do that. Not unless she thinks it would really help. Maybe it will help. I take one of my razor blades and leave my room to go to the bathroom. Everyone should be asleep by now. The bathroom is empty, like I knew it would be. I stand in front of the mirror. The girl I see staring back at me doesn't look familiar. I look like a ghost of the girl I used to be. I pull the blade vertically over my wrist. A line of crimson blood flows out of the cut. Somehow it does make me feel better. I make another cut. And another. And another. Blood is gushing out of my wrist. The blood falls into the basin and flows down the drain. If only my problems could flow down the drain as well.

"Rose, what the hell!" I jump at the sudden voice in the room. it's Alberta. She grabs a hand full of toilet paper and puts pressure on my cuts. I try to shove her away, but she is stronger that I am. She pulls me out of the bathroom and I follow her all the way to the infirmary.

"Dr Olendzki, I need your help."

 _Please, please tell me what you think... It would mean a lot. The first three people will get a shout out in the next chapter._

Crazyvampxoxo


	9. Chapter 9

_Heydi Eliza:Thanks for the review and at the moment I cannot answer any of your questions. You will have to read the story :)_

 _KokorAai: Thanks for the review. You are on the right track my friend. Keep readingthe story:)_

 _Passainte: Thanks for the review. i try to make the chapters longer but it is hard. i hope this story still holds your interest. :)_

 _Debpreato: Thanks for the review. You are sort of on the right track.:)_

CHAPTER 9

I wake up to a blinding white light and a very cold bed. I look around and realise I'm in the infirmary. Why am I here?

"Oh good, you're awake." Dr Olendzki says as she walks into the room. she has a look of worry on her face.

"Rose, we need to know why you did it." I raise both my eyebrows at her. What did I do? I look down at my body, trying to see why I am in this bed.

"You cut yourself Rose. Bad. We need to know why you did it." I look at my left wrist and see the bandages on my arm. Why did I do that? Cutting myself is something I would never do.

But wait.

Lissa's voice.

She told me to do it because I screwed things up with Dimitri.

"It was an accident. I didn't mean to do it." Dr Olendzki gives me a no-nonsense look. My mother knocks on the door before she pokes her head in the room.

"I would also like to know why you did that." Her angry glare holds my eyes for a few seconds before I can look away. I didn't even know she was still her.

"I think you need to get away from this place. Kirova and I agree that it would be best for you to finish this year at another school."

"No, please. I just wanted to try it. Lissa normally did it and she said it took her pain away. I tried it and it hurt but it didn't take anything away. I won't do it again." My mother looks at me sceptically.

"Please, I never ask you for anything. I just want to stay here. I have a new charge and I want to finish my last year at St Vlad's." I beg my mother with wide eyes. She looks over at Dr Olendzki, who nods her head.

"Fine, but one more stunt like this and I will come and get you. I must leave now, there is some business that I need to take care of. I will be back in time for graduation." I thank my mother and watch her leave the room. Dr Olendzki sits down in the arm chair next to my bed.

"Okay Rose, it's only me and you now. Please tell me what happened."

"Lately I get these emotions, emotions that aren't mine. At first, I thought it was Lissa's, but she is dead. I also get these times where I can't control my actions and emotions." Dr Olendzki writes down everything I tell her on a clip board she is holding.

"I can hear Lissa sometimes to. I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. I had a fight with Guardian Belikov and I did something stupid with Adrian and everything just felt to much. So Lissa told me to cut myself. I now know that it was stupid, and I won't try it again." The good doctor looks at me with a sympathetic look.

"Rose, I think Lissa's death has made you depressed. I'm going to give you anti-depressants that you need to take every day." I nod at her. Maybe the pills will take away the emotions I can't explain. I just wish I knew where they were coming from.

"Doc, who knows about this." I point to my wrist. I hope Dimitri doesn't know. He will think I did it because of him. Well I technically did, but I don't blame him.

"Just me, your mother, Alberta and the headmistress. But we will need to inform Guardian Belikov about this." I shake my head.

"No, please. Can this just stay with us? Like I said, it won't happen again, and I will make sure to take the looney pills."

"Rose, the pills will help you. Trust me. I will keep this between us."

Xxx

I make my way to the gym for morning practice. Dimitri told Kirova that I still needed the mornings to practice and that will resume my duties for the field test when school starts. That meant that I didn't get my afternoon practice. I moved all my stuff to Kira's room last night when I got out of the infirmary. Luckily, she was still up. Dimitri is putting out the practice mats when I enter the gym. He still looks angry. I mumble a small hello when I put my bag next to his and start my stretches. Dimitri doesn't run with me and he barely talks to me.

"Let's spar." I try my hardest to block all of Dimitri's hits while keeping my wrist out of the way. I just know that if he punches me over the cuts, all my stiches will tear open and he will know what I did. The sparing went well, I was defeated 99.99% of the time, but he didn't touch my wrist. I almost got out of the gym when Dimitri grabs me on my wrist to stop me from walking. I yell out in pain and Dimitri quickly let's go of my wrist. Blood leaks out of the wounds and comes through my sleeve and stains Dimitri's fingers. He looks down at his fingers then grabs my arm, rips my sleeve up and takes the bandage off. His facial expression goes from confusion to anger to rage.

"What is this, Rose?" Dimitri's voice is calm and clear. That is worst than him yelling. I try to pull my hand away, but his grip is firm. There is no escaping this and no talking around it. he repeats his question.

"It was an ac…"

"Don't even try to lie to me." I cower under Dimitri's glare.

"I cut myself. But I didn't mean to. I'm taking anti-depressants and I will be better." Dimitri pulls me towards him and folds his arms around me. He is feeling sorry for me. The poor little girl who must hurt herself to get attention.

"Why Roza?" He asks me gently.

"I just, I wanted a way to get rid of the pain. Lissa's death really hit me hard and then the new girl is assigned to me." I look up into his eyes.

"And then I hurt you in the worst way ever." Dimitri strokes my hair.

"I'm not going to say you didn't hurt me, but I can see you need me now more than ever. And I did promise you that I will be by your side." I press my head against his chest again and inhale his lovely scent. He holds me for a few seconds more before he let's me go.

"How about we redo the date this Sunday?" I nod my head. it's my day off then and I wouldn't want to spend it any other way.

"But I do have one condition, you are not allowed to be with Adrian alone. I know he is your friend, but it's going to take me a while to trust him around you." I want to argue, but he is right. I need to win his trust back completely. And I will, even if it kills me.

Xxx

I stand at the back of Kira's photography class. The teacher, Ms Carrick, is giving then their assignment.

"It will be 75% of your final grade. Think of this as your 'field test'." I hold back a scoff. Taking photo's is nothing like guarding a person. But whatever floats their boats.

"Because most of you have guardians, you will use your guardian as your model. I want you to capture them in action and I want you to capture their beautiful side. So, the point is to take action photos of them and portraits." A non-royal girl in the front raises her hand. Ms Carrick nods in her direction.

"Those of us who don't have guardian. Who do we use?"

"Well, you guys can take photos of any novice in action and use anyone as else for your portraits." Great, now I must be a model as well. Most girls would not complain, but when I'm not most girls. Kira turns around in her seat towards me and snaps two pictures of me. To say I was taken by surprise would be an understatement, but I didn't have time to be surprised for too long. Ten guardians dressed in black, aka strigoi attire, runs in to the class room from various points. Dimitri is one of them. He goes for a novice near me and makes quick work of him. I jump into action and attack him first. I try my hardest to focus on the fight and block out the flashes. All together we are twelve novices in the class. Four novices went to gather all the moroi to keep them in the corner while the rest of us fought. A novice named Greyson jumps on Dimitri's back, but Dimitri was expecting that. I turn to the other novice on my right, Kate. She is surrounded by three 'strigoi'. I jump in to help her and make quick work of two strigoi. Dimitri is back on me when I turn to him. He is not taking it easy on me. I see a slight opening to knock him down. I take it and drive my fake stake into his chest. Pride shines in his eyes, but I don't have time to be glad about it. there is still one strigoi left. I attack Alberta from the side and open her arms up to give the Kate an opening. At the end of the fight it is just me, Kate and two boy novices left standing and the four who protected the moroi. Four out of eight novices standing wasn't the best numbers, but it was enough for now. I pull the hair tie out of my hair and wipe the sweat from my forehead. Dimitri comes over to me and puts his hand on my shoulder.

"I'm so proud of you Rose." His smile makes me smile. All I ever want to do is make him proud and I just did. I'm going to keep making him proud till I die. A flash snaps us out of our moment. Kira bounces over to us.

"OMG, that was insane. You did so well Rose. I got a few nice shots of you." I turn to Kira and give her a tight lip smile.

"Thank you, guardians. Can I get back to teaching now?" Ms Carrick points to the door. All the guardians leave the class room, some hobbling and others holding their arms or necks. Looks like we did a pretty good job on them.

"Could you show me the photos later?" I ask Kira hesitantly. She nods her head and walks back to her seat to continue the class. Maybe I should give her a chance. We could become friends. That disgusted feeling rolls over me again. I need to take the anti-depressant soon.


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

I look at the pills in my hand. Two little pills are supposed to make me okay. They must take away the voice I hear and the negative feelings I get. I hope they don't take away my ability to see Lissa. I read the name of the pills on the box, Paroxetine. It is the same ones Lissa used for a sort while to keep the spirit at bay. She told me she felt empty when she used them, like a zombie. She had a hard time connecting to her emotions, even the good ones. Will they turn me into a zombie? It's this or going away. So, if being a zombie means I can stay close to my loved ones, then so be it.

"Hey, want to see the photos. I developed them earlier." She hands me five A4 photographs of me. The first one is when she took the snap of me standing at the back of the class. She put it in black and white. I look nice, even though I'm not smiling. The next three is me fighting.

One with Dimitri.

One with Alberta.

One where Kate and I kick our theory teacher in the gut.

the second last one is when I staked Dimitri, even on the picture, you can see his proudness and happiness. The last one is of me and Dimitri after the fight when he put his hand on my shoulder. It's obvious on the photo that we love each other, well it is to me. Kira edited then to look slightly better. I hand the first four photos back to Kira.

"Can I keep this one please?" I ask her. She smiles a mega watt smile and nod her head.

"Sure." I thank her and put the photo on the desk Kira gave me. She said that I could use one half of the room because she doesn't have so many stuffs to fill the whole room.

"I was thinking, could we do the portrait shots Sunday?" Kira asks as she repacks her book bag for tomorrow.

"Uhm, Sunday is my off day and I have plans. How about Saturday?" Kira looks up at me and nods her head.

"Sure, sorry I forgot that you have Sundays off. Are you ready to go to dinner?" I nod my head and motion for her to lead the way.

Xxx

"Can I ask you a question." I ask her as we take our seats by an empty table. I don't think she is comfortable enough to sit by my friends yet. Kira nods at me and takes a bite out of her salad. She even eats like Lissa did.

"They said the Queen send you here and she made me your guardian and she got you the room you have now. Do you know why? Not to be rude, but you are not a royal." Kira considers my question while she chews on her food.

"I really have no idea. She just requested to see me two weeks ago and told me that I'm very special and important. I think she has a few screws loose, but we do not ask questions when our Queen gives a request." She intimidates Kirova perfectly. I try my hardest not to laugh, but I fail. Kira looks at me like she has won a Grammy award.

"Now I have a question." I motion for her to continue with my fork.

"Why don't you like me?" I nearly choke on my food. Am I that obvious? I look around for some help but realise I'm on my own and Kira is waiting for an answer.

"It's not that I don't like you, I don't know enough about you to make that statement." Kira lifts one of her perfectly plucked eyebrows. Waiting for me to explain.

"Okay, you just look a lot like my best friend and you are staying in her room. she died a short while ago and I'm no really dealing with her death well." Kira puts her hand on top of mine.

"I'm not trying to replace her. I'm sorry for your loss and if you ever need to talk." She left the sentence hanging but I know what she means. I could talk to her. I nod my head and continue eating. Just as we started to head out of the cafeteria, a fight started. Three guardians attack a novice named Frank. All my instincts tell me to help him, but I need to focus on my moroi. I grab Kira's arm and run towards Frank's moroi. She is unprotected. I grab her arm with my other hand and pull her to the door and take a protective stance in front of the moroi. The guardians are Stan, Dimitri and Richard. They defeat Frank eventually.

"Novice Chandler, you put up a good fight, but if it wasn't for Novice Hathaway, your moroi would have been dead. You need to make sure your moroi is in a safe place." Stan states as he writes down something in a little black book he has in his pocket. I see Dimitri and Richard doing the same. Frank glares at me a little when he came towards me.

"Why didn't you just help me instead of taking my moroi and getting all the credit." Dimitri took a step towards us, but I held up my hand, stopping him.

"Because I didn't want to leave my moroi unprotected. There isn't room for two morons in this class." Frank's fist connects with my right cheek before I see it coming. Now normally my reflexes are pretty great, so I, along with half the cafeteria, was shocked that he actually got the hit. Dimitri grabs Frank by his collar and drags him out of the cafeteria.

"Hathaway follow." He shouts over his shoulder. Why is he shouting at me? I'm the one who got blindsided. Well it is his job to teach me not to be blindsided. Maybe he thinks everyone will think he is a bad mentor. I tell Kira to go to her room and to wait for me there. I follow Dimitri and frank to the gym. It's about a five-minute walk from the cafeteria, but with the speed Dimitri is walking, we reach the gym in two minutes.

"How dare you hit another novice who was trying to help you?" Dimitri's accent is a little ticker when he gets mad and he is raging. He tosses Frank on the floor and tower above him. He grabs my arm gently and pulls me into Frank's view.

"A fellow guardian is your friend, in any situation. You will treat them with respect and loyalty. You will apologize to her right now and from now on, if you ever see Novice Hathaway in need. You. Will. Help. Her." Dimitri emphasises the last words dangerously. Even I'm terrified. Frank looks at me with wide eyes. He is near to wetting his pants.

"I'm so sorry, Rose. Thank you for the help and if you ever need anything. I'm your guy." I nod at Frank. I wanted to make him sweat a little bit more but I don't think he has any more sweat left in him.

"Now Leave." Dimitri commands him. Frank scurries up and runs out of the gym. Dimitri turns towards me. His eyes change from rage to concern. This man can switch through his emotions like a girl through dresses.

"Are you okay?" I nod my head and Dimitri pulls me into his arms. He kisses my forehead.

"Thank you for standing up for me." Dimitri holds me at arm's length.

"Why didn't you block him. I really thought you would." I shrug my shoulders.

"I honestly don't know. I also, thought I would be able to block it, but my reflexes just weren't there." Dimitri looks concern again. I caress his cheek with my knuckles.

"It was a one time think. I have a badass mentor and he trained me good." Dimitri takes my hand and kiss my palm.

"I know you can take care of yourself, I just worry about you. I always will." Dimitri leans down and pecks my lips. Normally, butterflies would eat up my stomach when he kissed me, but for some reason that didn't happen now. I frown at myself but let it go before Dimitri could see. Maybe I'm just still in shock.

 _Review please :)_


	11. Chapter 11

_From the next chapter, there will be more action in the story. I need a villans name. I want you guys to create a Villan for me. name, race, features, if he has an accent. everything. But it has to be a man._

CHAPTER 11

I google Paroxetine as soon as Kira falls asleep. I read through the side effects.

"Loss of appetite, insomnia, lack of emotions, slower reflexes. No wonder." I read the side effects out loud. That explains how he got the hit in. And maybe the situation with Dimitri when he kissed me. These pills are turning me into a zombie. Soon I won't be able to express any emotion. I will just be neutral. I haven't heard the voice since the accident, that is a good sign. I look over at the wall clock. It's time to see Lissa.

Xxx

"Something seems different about you Rose." Lissa points out a few seconds into our conversation. I shrug my shoulders.

"I'm on the same meds you were. I cut myself Liss." Lissa's eyes widen. She looks shocked.

"I know you are not handling my death well, but that is seriously bad Rose." I tell her about everything that has happened after I saw her. My insecurities with Dimitri and Tasha. The kiss with Adrian. My fight with Dimitri. And the voice that sounds like her, telling me to cut myself. Lissa paces in front of me.

"I would never tell you that Rose. It doesn't help. Even when I did it, I knew it didn't help. We need to find out what is causing these emotions and the voice." I sit down on a big rock near me and cross my arms over my chest.

"Maybe it is the darkness. When I died, all the darkness must have gone to you. It is trying to kill you Rose. Go to Adrian and ask him to take a look at your aura." I nod my head at her. Dimitri is not going to like this, but it has to be done. I need to know what is going on with me.

"I have to go now Rose. I know you miss me, but these visits are going to have to stop someday. My place is with my family now. And in time, this will be your place to. I will see you Monday again. Try to figure out what is going on with you this weekend." Lissa disappears before I can say a word. She wants me to figure this out on my own, but I need her.

No.

I can do this. She wants me to get better, then that is exactly what I'm going to do. I start to make my way back to Kira's room. Rest is exactly what I need now.

Xxx

"Dr Olendzki, I need to talk to you." I stop the good doctor as I make my way into the infirmary.

"These pills, they affect me in bad ways. My reflexes are much slower, and I can't feel any emotion anymore."

"That will happen in the begin Rose. Just stick with it for a month and if you still think it's bad for you, I will get you other." I nod my head at her. Maybe she is right. If they still affect me after a month then I will make another plan. I will just have to. my reflexes are what keeps me alive.

"All settled?" Kira ask me as I walk to the exit of the infirmary. I nod at her and take my position in as her near guard. Training with Dimitri this morning felt weird. I normally got this excited feeling when I see him and when he touched me, the feeling is euphoric, but now. It just felt, normal. The way I felt around any other teacher. I hope these pills won't take away my feelings for Dimitri. No, that is impossible. Our love is stronger than a few pills.

Xxx

"You seemed very distracted today. Is everything okay?" the sudden sound of Adrian's voice gives me a fright. I'm waiting outside the room of the feeder Kira is seeing. Adrian must be here to feed.

"I need to ask you a favour. Meet me at the gym Sunday morning, please." Adrian nods his head. he still has a look od concern on his face. I place my hand on the shoulder.

"I'm fine Adrian. And I'm sorry about the kiss. I was intoxicated and feeling sad and everything that is not good, you are one of my best friends. I don't want to lose you." Adrian pats my and, on his shoulder, and winks at me.

"What kiss?" I smile at him and watch him walk to a feeder room. Kira comes out a few minutes after Adrian leaves me alone. We head to the cafeteria and grab a tray of food each.

"What is your element?" I ask Kira. She lifts her left palm and makes a ball of fire appear in her hand.

"I'm sure you heard of my biological parents and that I was raised by dhampirs. They are my real parents. They taught me how to fight and use my element to defend myself." I's speechless. Moroi learning to fight is unheard of. Well sort of, Tasha wants to change the law to give the moroi a chance to learn to fight if they want to. I support that law chance with all my heart.

"If you want, I can give you a few lessons." Kira's eyes stretch as wide as saucers. She nods vehemently.

"Okay every Saturday night. Then the gym is unused." Kira holds out her pinkie-finger. I wrap my finger tightly around hers.

"Hi, hello, sorry to interrupt, but I have good news. There is karaoke tonight for all the seniors in the gym." Mia sits down next to me. She looks at Kira as if she sees her for the first time.

"I'm Mia by the way. It's nice to meet you." She turns back to me.

"Are you going to come and sing?" I point to Kira.

"I go and do where and what she goes and does." Kira looks like she is deep in thought.

"Well I would love to go. And maybe sing, but you have to sing Rose." I don't have a problem with singing in front of people. I nod my head. a ping from my phone alerts me that I have a message. Dimitri send me a song. I put the volume down and put the speaker close to my ear. The song pulls on my heart, for the first time since I started to take the pills, I feel emotions.

I feel love.


	12. Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

"Are you ready?" Kira asks me as she steps out of the bathroom. I nod my head.

"Alberta send out a message. All he novices has off tonight to enjoy the karaoke." Kira links her arm with mine, something Lissa did a lot. I want to pull my arm away, but I don't want to hurt Kira's feelings. I walk as fast as Kira can to the gym. Who ever organised the karaoke did a very good job. The gym has a small stage with a mic and a screen. There is a dance floor and some tables with chairs. Kira leads me to a table close to the stage. All my friends except Mia join us several minutes later.

"Hello guys and welcome to St Vlad's very first karaoke night. Now I know karaoke is not everyone's cup of tea, but we need some fun back in our lives. First up we have Rose and Adrian." Adrian smirks at me as he motions for me to go to the stage. Dimitri is going to kill one of us and I'm pretty sure it is going to be Adrian. I look at the back of the gym, near the door, is where Dimitri is standing. His eyes lock on my and he doesn't look too pleased.

"I already chose a song." Adrian informs me as he hands me the second microphone. The music starts to play, and we get ready to sing. The whole room applause and cheers when they recognise the song.

 _Rose_

 _Okay, can I just say something crazy?_

 **Adrian**

 **I love crazy.**

 _Rose_

 _All my life has been a series of doors in my face and then suddenly I bump into you._

 **Adrian**

 **I was thinking the same thing! Cause like I've been searching my whole life to find my own place. And maybe it's the party talking or the chocolate fondue.**

 ** _Both_**

 ** _But with you._**

 **Adrian**

 **I found my place.**

 _Rose_

 _I see your face._

 ** _Both_**

 ** _And it's nothing like I've ever known before. Love is an open door. Love is an open door._**

 ** _Love is an open door. With you, with you, with you, with you._**

 ** _Love is an open door._**

 **Adrian**

 **I mean It's crazy!**

 _Rose_

 _What?_

 **Adrian**

 **We finish each other's…**

 _Rose_

 _Sandwiches!_

 **Adrian**

 **That's what I was gonna say!**

 _Rose_

 _I've never met someone who thinks so much like me._

 ** _Both_**

 ** _Jinx, jinx again._**

 ** _Our mental synchronization can have but one explanation. You and I were just meant to be. Say goodbye, say goodbye. To the pain of the past, we don't have to feel it anymore. Love is an open door. Love is an open door. Life can be so much more, with you, with you, with you, with you. Love is an open door._**

The crowd cheers as we finish the song and Adrian looks pleased with himself. I roll my eyes as I walk off the stage to take my seat. I look in Dimitri's direction again. If looks could kill, Adrian would be six feet under by now.

Xxx

Mia calls my name again after seven people tried their best to sing. I give the name of the song I want to sing to the DJ and take my place by the mic. I stare into Dimitri's eyes as the song starts and I can see the mega watt smile he gives me. I going to sing the song he sent me earlier, I'm just going to change a few of the words

 _Rose_

 _He looks so pretty when he wakes up yeah._

 _You should hear him talking to his mamma on the phone._

 _I love it when he raps to an Eminem song._

 _That's my guy._

 _Man, his eyes really drive me crazy._

 _You should see him smile when he holds a baby._

 _I can honestly say that he saved me, my guy. Yeah._

 _Yeah that's my guy in the driver seat. Windows down, dancing around, causing a scene. That's my guy sipping crown of sprite in a ball cap turned back, oh he got me like._

 _Yeah baby, you gone and done it again. Making all the gals wish that you were with them. But I bet they don't see what I see when I see my guy._

 _Every night when he goes to bed. He hits his knees and bows his head. Thanks, the Lord for another day. I just thank Him for my guy. Yeah._

 _Yeah that's my guy in the driver seat. Windows down, dancing around causing a scene. That's my guy sipping crown of sprite in a ball cap turned back, oh he got me like._

 _Yeah baby you gone and done it again. Making all the gals wish that you were with them. But I bet they don't see what I see when I see my guy. Oh, my guy._

 _Yeah that's my guy in his truck. In the songs that I sing with the radio up. My guy, in my heart, in my soul, in the air that I breathe every day. That's my guy, yeah everything. My guy._

 _That's my guy in the driver seat. Windows down, dancing around, causing a scene. That's my guy sipping crown of sprite in a ball cap turned back, oh he got me like. Yeah baby you gone and done it again. Making all the gals wish you were with them. But I bet they don't see what I see when I see my guy. Oh, my guy. Yeah, my guy._

I can't hear the crowd clapping or see them cheering, all I can see is my guy at the back smiling his full smile at me with love shining out of his eyes. I will be alright. We will be alright. Our love can withstand anything.

 _Review please._

 _Songs used:_

 _Love is an open door - frozen_

 _My girl - dylan Scott._


	13. Chapter 13

_Okay guys I don't know if you noticed. But i posted chapters 11 and 12 on the same document. i separated them now and this small chapetr is a way to say thanks and sorry. longer chapters will come in the future. i promise._

CHAPTER 13

The field test has been going on for two weeks now. Dimitri told me that my score is the highest so far and that if I keep it up, there will be a long list of moroi who want me as their guardian, just not the moroi I want. My visits with Lissa has gotten fewer. She says that she can feel me getting better and, in a way, I feel it to. I'm not getting any voices in my head and the weird foreign emotions has disappeared, but so has my other emotions. I think Dimitri is noticing it to. I can still remember our first date.

 _Flashback…_

 _I knock on the cabin's door, praying that Tasha won't open the door again._

 _"_ _Come on in Roza." Dimitri smiles at me and motions for me to enter the cabin. The place looks totally different. Rose pedals thrown on the floor around a small table with a romantic dinner set up. Candles burning everywhere. He really went all out. The smell of pizza makes my stomach growl. I decided to wear a black mini dress with long lace sleeves and an open back, a gift from my angel. Dimitri takes a moment to study my outfit and he nods in approval._

 _"_ _You look utterly beautiful Roza." I smile at him and thank him with a sweet kiss. I make the right decision with this dress. The feeling of Dimitri's hand on my bare back is amazing. But the feeling only lasted a few seconds before it felt numb. My emotions are like a light switch now. One moment it is on and then when I take the pills it goes off. I hate it. I give Dimitri the wrapped present I got him. He looks at me with an eyebrow raised. He opens it and smiles. It's the picture Kira took of us, the one I asked her if I could keep. Dimitri wraps his arms around my waist and spins me around. Dimitri pulls out my chair for me to sit. He brings out another table with wheels and push it over to me. Pizza, brownies, chocolate covered strawberries and Champaign. He pours us both a class._

 _"_ _Non-alcoholic. Aw, couldn't even break the rules for one-night Comrade." Dimitri gives me a WTF-look._

 _"_ _I'm breaking enough rules just by being here tonight." My witty comeback gets stopped by my hungry stomach. Dimitri sits down and motions to the food._

 _"_ _All your favourites have at it." He didn't have to tell me twice. I grab a piece of pizza and take a big bite. It has been ages since I had good pizza. A moan escapes my lips before I can stop it. Dimitri shifts uncomfortably in his seat. Oh, he is liking this._

 _After eating about four slices of pizza and two brownies, I was ready for the strawberries. I grab the bowl and sit on the floor in front od the fire place. Dimitri had thrown a blanket and some pillows for us on the floor. I pat the spot next to me and smile up at him. I take a strawberry and hold it out for Dimitri to taste. This felt so normal, like a thing every couple does. Well I suppose it is. Dimitri takes a strawberry and holds it out for me. The mixture of chocolate and berry makes my taste buds sing. Another moan escapes my lips. Dimitri shifts again. I take the bowl and place it far away from us and lean into kiss Dimitri. Tonight, it is just him and me. No guardian and novice. I pull Dimitri down with me as I lay down. He keeps his weight off of me with his elbows. The kiss turns more powerful and hungry. I pull Dimitri's shirt off in one swift movement. When the kiss continues, the switch is turned off. The once powerful kiss feels numb. I pull away from a frustrated Dimitri._

 _"_ _I have to go." I stand up and make my way to the door. Dimitri reaches me in time and makes me face him._

 _"_ _Did I do something wrong?" He looks worried. Oh, how I wish I wasn't on these pills._

 _"_ _No, you didn't, it's me. There is something wrong with me." I run out of the cabin before he could respond. I know I should just tell him about the pills and the side effects, but I need them to stay here, with him._

 _End of flashback._

We haven't really talked about the date. I have been too busy and every time we get a moment to ourselves, something would come up. Apparently, the guardians have their hands full with some run-away teens. Three dhampir girls has run away from the academy. I am on my way to Dimitri now to tell him about the pills. He needs to know that I love him, and these pills are making my emotions numb.

 **R: Where u?**

His reply is almost instant.

 **B: At guest housing. Come over. Room 626.**

I change the direction I was heading and make my way to the room he was in. what would he be doing in guest housing? I knock on the door of room 626 and wait a few seconds. Dimitri opens the door with his breath-taking smile. The one I live for.

"Roza, there are some people I would love for you to meet."

 _Please review._


	14. Chapter 14

_Hey guys. I still need a name for the villan... the moment i get the name, i will post two chapters. promise._

CHAPTER 14

Six pairs of dark brown eyes stare at me as I make my way into the room. This is not good. I'm not a family person. I don't do well with family reunions. And this isn't even my family.

"Roza, this is my family. My mother Olena, my babushka Yeva and my sisters, Karolina, Sonja and Viktoria. Everyone this is my student Rose." A small boy, about ten years of age, taps Dimitri on his shoulder with a questioning look on his face. He looks so much like Dimitri. He is also growing his hair to be shoulder length.

"What about me, Uncle Dimka?" He asks. Dimitri looks down at him and smiles.

"Oh, and this is Paul. I was saving the best for last." Paul turns to me and gives me his hand to shake. I accept his hand.

"It's nice to meet all of you." I nod at them all. The sudden crying of a baby in one of the rooms gives me a fright.

"Can I go get her?" Dimitri asks to his eldest sister. She nods her head with a smile on her face. She looks relieved that she didn't have to get up. Sonja, Dimitri's younger sister, looks about eight months pregnant.

"Dimitri has told us so much about you Roza." Olena said as she motions for me to sit in the arm chair opposite her. It is weird hearing my Russian name being said by anyone but Dimitri.

"I hope all of it is good things." I joke as I sit down. I look over at his grandmother Yeva. She is glaring at me. She mutters something is Russian that makes Olena chastise her.

"That is not very nice, mother." Olena looks at me apologetically. I wave away the apology. My mother told me long ago that not everyone is going to like me, and I have accepted that. Hell, she doesn't even like me.

"No worries." The silence in the room started to get awkward, luckily Dimitri returns back to the room, holding a baby in his arms. The sight of him holding a baby caused something in my stomach to churn. He was born to be a father and I can't give that to him.

 _"_ _Sometimes, love means sacrifice. You've got to let someone you love for them to find their own happiness."_

Words Lissa's mother once told me reappears in my mind. I have to let him go. That the only way he will have his happily ever after. I can't give him a family like he wants and with these pills, I can't show him my emotions. He deserves so much more than I can give him.

"Rose?" Dimitri's voice brings me out of my thoughts. He is looking at me with one eyebrow raised. He must have asked me something.

"Do you want to hold my niece, Zoya?" Dimitri asks. No, I can't get attached to his family, not when I'm planning on ending our relationship. I stand up abruptly.

"No, I have to go." I make my way out of the room swiftly. Dimitri grabs my hand just as I reach the stairs. I didn't even notice him coming after me.

"Roza? What is wrong?" I caress Dimitri's cheek as I fight back the tears.

"I have to let you go." My voice wavers a bit as I try to hold back the sobs that want to break free. Dimitri looks confused.

"You are meant to be a father. To have a family. I can't give that to you." The emotional switch clinks off and makes my tears go away. I never thought I would be grateful for the switch, but I am now.

"This has to be the end of the road for us Dimitri."

"But, no Rose. I won't accept this. I have made my piece with the fact that I will never have kids with you and that is fine, as long as I have you." Dimitri tries to pull me to his chest, but I resist, pushing away from him.

"No, here is where our relationship ends. I'm sure if you call Tasha, she will be more than…" Dimitri crushes his lips against mine. I respond immediately. This is where I want to be for the rest of my life. By Dimitri's side, kissing, fighting and everything else. But I love him too much to deny him the one thing he deserves. I pull away from him.

"Please, I have to make this sacrifice for you." Dimitri shakes his head, hurt is clear on his face.

"No Rose, if you walk away now, it's for you. You don't get to decide what is good for me. Walking away is going to be all on you." I take a few steps back. With every step I take, I can feel my heart breaking. Dimitri can see the apology forming on my lips.

"Please don't Roza." He begs. It's a good thing my emotions are numb because if they weren't and I heard him beg me to stay. I would have cracked and ran to him with my arms open. Maybe these pills are good, they help me make the tough decisions that I couldn't make with my emotions. I turn to leave, but Dimitri calls my name using his mentor voice.

"Do you want me to go on my knees for you to stay? Do you want to see me grovel and beg? Because I will. That is how much I love you." I shake my head slightly.

"No, I want you to have a family and be happy. _That_ is how much I love you." I turn and walk away from the love of my life.

Xxx

"Rose, where are you?" Kira's voice comes through the speaker of my phone. She has been calling me four times. I went to the cabin after breaking up with Dimitri. I just wanted to be alone.

"Never mind that. The Queen is here, and she wants to see me and you now."

"I will be there in a minute." I hang up my phone and make my way to the assembly hall. The Queen always did her business in the assembly hall when she visited the school. I am in no mood to see the Queen, but it's not like I have much of a choice.

"Ah, Rosemarie. We have been searching for you for about an hour now." The Queen tsks as I walk into the room. I bow my head slightly and stand next to Kira. She smiles at me and nods her head. Both of us give the Queen our full attention.

"I'm not going to beat around the bush with this. It's just going to be a waste of time. Kira Valentine is the daughter of Freya Brown and Eric Dragomir." My eyes nearly pop out of my head. This is insane. And impossible. Insane and impossible. There is no way the Queen has he information right. Mr Dragomir loved his wife. He would never have had an affair. No, she has this wrong.

"It's true Rose. We have DNA tests to prove it. you will be assigned to protect Kira after graduation and I will make this information public at graduation. For now, you two need to keep this information between the three of us. The less people know about it now, the better." I wanted to protest, but Tatiana hands me the DNA tests. It seems legit, well I have never seen DNA tests before. But why would she lie about this. This is too much. I look over at Kira. She is a shade paler and she looks like she is going to be sick.

"You can leave now, Rose. I have a few things I need to discuss with Kira." I squeeze Kira's shoulder to give her some strength before I leave the room. I have to meet with Lissa in half an hour. I ponder if I have to tell Lissa about Kira as I start to walk to the woods.

"You did a very selfless thing." I almost jumped ten feet into the air when a voice spoke. I didn't even notice her until I hear her. I turn to the bench nest to a tree and see Yeva, knitting. Her accent is much thicker than Dimitri's.

"It shocked me and that rarely happens." She pats the vacant seat next to her. I sit down as far away from her as possible.

"I have no idea…"

"Really? You are going with that line. Giving Dimitri a chance to have a family." Yeva looks at me like I'm the stupidest person she has ever met.

"I didn't see that one coming. I saw him having children and when I saw you, I knew that he is in love with you. I thought you would hold him back from having what his hear most desired. But I was wrong. You are going to be the reason he has children." I look down at my hands in my lap. I just wish I could be the one to give him what he desired. I didn't dream of children often, but when I did, it was children that Dimitri gave me.

"I just want him to be happy. That is all I have ever wanted." Yeva pats my knee as she stands up. She shoves her knitting into a bag.

"He will be, and so will you. Just think clearly about what you want to do tonight. Now go and talk to the princess." My jaw nearly hits the ground as she walks away. What the hell? How does she know I see Lissa? Maybe she… nope there is no other explanation. She was talking about Lissa. Dimitri did tell me once that he thought his grandmother is a witch. Maybe he was right.

Xxx

"You are going to leave?" Lissa asks me after I told he my plan. I want to get out of here. Start somewhere fresh. I need to give Dimitri his space and I wanted out of this messed up world. I decided that I wasn't going to tell Lissa about Kira. I don't want to upset her now. It's unnecessary.

"I have to Liss. If I stay here, I will just be tempted to run to Dimitri and beg his forgiveness. We both need a new start." Lissa looks sad for a moment.

"I know it's selfish, but what about Christian? Who will look after him for me." Since I started to guard Kira, Christian has been hanging out with us a lot. He and Kira had a few classes together and they have become good friends. She told me that she has a crush on him and when I look at Christian, I think the feeling is mutual. He will never admit it because he is still in love with Lissa. At first it pissed me off that he developed feelings for Kira but now, I just want him to be happy. Maybe Kira could help him ease the hurt and help him heal. And now, knowing what I know, he will always have a piece of Lissa with him if he has Kira. And I will to.

"I think he will be just fine Liss. Trust me." Lissa opens her mouth like she wanted to say something, but she disappears before she has the chance.

"Hello there. Tell me, are you Rosemarie Hathaway?" I turn around and stare into cold eyes with a red ring around the pupil.

 _Reviews..._


	15. Chapter 15

_Sorry about the long wait. I am not to thrilled by the reviews. I want more please. Thank you to all that has stuck with the story from the start and that reviews every chapter. You guys Rock._

CHAPTER 15

I couldn't think of a witty comeback because fear paralyzed me for only a second. The strigoi lifts on of his eyebrows, waiting for my answer.

"Who wants to know?" I finally find my tongue. The strigoi claps his hands together.

"It has to be you. Your smart mouth is your downfall." The strigoi takes a step closer to me. I quickly scan my surrounding area. The wards are not that far away. If I can get him distracted for only thirty seconds, I could run into the safety of the wards.

"I'm not going to be the one falling down." I lunge at him, but to my disappointment, it didn't take him by surprise. How does this guy know me? He dodges my strikes perfectly. This guy was definitely a dhampir before he turned. I see a small opening on his left knee. His left side is his weak side. I strike out with my foot and hit his knee. He falls to the floor. I make a break for it. Heading in the direction of the wards, of safety, to Dimitri. Only a few steps… a strong blow to my head makes me fall to the floor. Black spots over take my vision. The strigoi lifts me up and throws me over his shoulder with a sigh. I let the darkness over take my vision and pray that Dimitri would find me.

Xxx

Who was I kidding? I broke-up with Dimitri. I hurt him. There is no way he will come look for me now.

 _He will because he loves you._ Yes, he loves me. He will come and find me because it's the noble thing to do. But it has been four days. So far, the strigoi that took me hasn't shown his face again. The only people that come into my room is humans to bring me meals. Well if you can call it that. I think prison food would be better than whatever they give to me. Each time it's a different human who brings me my food. The next one looking more lost than the one before him. I scan my room for the hundredth time today. No windows, one thumb-print locked door, no escape. A large bed takes up most of the space and there is a small bathroom attached to the room. It looks like a half decent motel room but what bothers me the most is the very thick and very scary looking hook attached to the ceiling. I shudder when I think about what they use the hook for. I walk over to the bed and sit down. I need to think of a way out. Maybe when the next human comes in, I can… I jump to my feet when the door opens suddenly. It isn't time for my meal yet. Four human guys walk in followed by two one strigoi I haven't seen. The humans are carrying in a large flat screen TV and a really big camera and a tripod. They place the TV on the small hooks on the wall and place the camera on the tripod next to the TV facing me. the strigoi gives me an evil smile.

"They will be with you shortly." The way he says it makes my skin crawl. Who is they and what did they want. I watch as they exit my prison. Not long after the humans left the door opens again. I move as far away from the door as I can. The strigoi who took me comes in followed by an elderly moroi man. He looks very familiar, but I know I have never seen him before.

"Yes, that is her. I should have sent you the first time." The moroi says to the strigoi. This is strange. How can the two of them work together. Strigoi drink moroi blood. The strigoi smiles coldly at the man.

"Where is my manners. You probably don't have a clue who I am." The moroi takes a few steps closer to me. An evil glint shines bright in his eyes.

"I'm Robert Doru, you know my brother, Prince Dashkov." All the blood in my body turns ice cold. I didn't know Victor had a brother. And what the hell does his brother want with me.

"This here is an old friend of mine. Vincent Hunt." The strigoi, Vincent, bows dramatically in front of me. I try to take another step back, but my back is already against the wall. Robert looks at me and smiles, he loves the fact that I'm afraid. It gives him joy to see the fear in my eyes. I try to put my guardian mask up as fast as possible. At this moment I miss the pills. I wish Dimitri had taught me how to perfect the mask he always wears. Sometimes is hard even for me to read the emotions in his eyes.

 _Where are you Comrade?_ I ask in my head, but I know he isn't coming. He probably thinks I left the academy. Well that was my plan before Vincent kidnapped me. Movement catches my eyes, making me look at Vincent. He walks over to the camera and starts to push buttons and set the camera where he wants it. Robert takes a walky-talky out of his pocket and speaks to someone softly.

"Now, you are probably wondering why I have taken you. It's really simple, if you think about it. You and Vasilisa put my brother in prison and now you are going to help me get him out. I would have taken the princess as well, but she is dead." Anger boils in side of me at the casual way he speaks about Lissa's death. I jump forward to attack him, but Vincent is on me a second before I could strangle Robert. Vincent tosses me on to the bed and dares me with his eyes to make another attempt to attack. Normally I would have jumped at the challenge, but I have learned when to back down and this was a backing down moment. When Vincent is convinced that I wont attack again, he turns to the camera and continues with what he was doing. The door opens again, and two human guys carries in a table. On the table is a thick rope, some whips and handcuffs. Now, if it was just me and Dimitri in the room, I would have thought that he wanted to try some of that fifty shades stuff, but he isn't here, and this is not the time for that. Robert smiles at me in a wicked way as he picks up the rope. The hear a soft _ding_ coming from the camera. A small bright red light lets me know that it's recording.

"Are you ready to have some fun Rosemarie?" I swallow past the lump in my throat as they walk towards me. This is not going to end well, for me.


	16. Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

Vincent ties my hands together. I struggle as much as I can, making his task very difficult. When the rope is secure enough around my hands, Vincent stands on a chair and ties the other end to the hook. He pulls the rope up, making my hands lift above my head. He pulls the rope again, I can barely stand on the ground. There is no fighting back in this position. Robert has been busy with the TV as Vincent tied me up. The _Skype_ ringtone draws my attention to Robert. Who the hell is he Skyping? After a few short seconds, the skype call is answered by…

"Dimitri!" I yell as I see his face appear on the TV. His eyes land on my face and he let out a breath.

"What do you want with her?" He demands, in his mentor voice. Robert laughs, making Dimitri glare at him more. Alberta appears on the screen next to Dimitri.

"Hello Guardian Belikov and Petrov. Like you can see, I have something you want back." Robert points at me with a shaking finger. Dimitri scans my body, looking for any injuries.

"I have taken good care of her Guardian Belikov, well so far. And her well being is in your hands from now on." Dimitri opens his mouth to say something, but he cuts himself off when Vincent rips off my shirt. I protest and struggle as much as I can. I feel relieved that he didn't make a move to remove my tights. The cold air in the room makes goose bumps appear on my skin.

"Rosemarie helped to put my brother in jail and she is going to help get him out." Robert speaks directly to Alberta and Dimitri.

"She can't help you…" Dimitri is once again cut off by Vincent, this time its because he hit the whip that was on the table against my naked back. A scream escapes my lips when the whip leaves my back. Dimitri looks furious.

"How! How can she help you?" He asks. Robert claps his hands together.

"Now that is the question you should have asked me first. Every time you say something I don't like, Rosemarie will pay for it. you and Guardian Petrov needs to figure out how to get Victor out. I don't care how you do it, just do it."

"That is impossible…" Vincent cracks the whip over my back again and again, making me scream. Dimitri flinches and begs Vincent to stop.

"Just do it. I will call back every day at noon until Victor is with me and everyday that he isn't. well Rosemarie is not going to like that very much. Chop, chop Guardian Belikov. Her life is in your hands now." Vincent whips me five more times before they disconnect the call. My back feels numb as Vincent unties my hands. He leaves the rope on the hook. I sit down on the bed as tears spill over my cheeks. Can I handle being tortured for days until they get Victor out? I just have to. I'm not going to die like this. Not by Vincent or Robert's hands. I lay down on my stomach and try to fall asleep. I need to build up my strength to get through this.

Xxx

A cold cloth pressing against my sore back wakes me up. I glance over my shoulder and see a human girl, she can't be older than fifteen. She wipes down my wounds and apply some cream. She hands me my breakfast and two pain pills with a glass of water. I thank her and gulp down the pills.

"Why are you here? You looks so young" I ask before she exits the room. She looks terrified that I talked to her. I raise my eyebrows at her.

"I have no where else to go." She replies and leaves the room. I take a few bites of the food and fall asleep again.

Xxx

"Wake up!" I jump upright in the bed when I hear Vincent's voice. I cringe at the pain in my back. Robert is switching on the TV again. I guess its noon. Vincent grabs my upper arm and pulls me out of the bed and ties my hands to the rope again. I wait patiently for Dimitri to answer the call. I'm slightly disappointed when Alberta's face appears on the screen. Dimitri is nowhere to be seen.

"Where is the notorious Dimitri Belikov." Robert asks Alberta.

"He will be here any minute now. He went to the Queen to talk about releasing Victor." Robert smiles at the news. I hope the Queen is in a good mood. I hope she agrees to let Victor go. I want to go home. I want to be wrapped up in Dimitri's arms. I want to apologise to him in everyway possible. Dimitri walks into the room with Alberta, his face is a mask of anger. Oh no.

"Well?" Robert is waiting for an answer and so was I, but seeing Dimitri's face, I already know what she said.

"The Queen will not let him go." Robert nods his head at Vincent, who swings the whip in my direction. This time on my stomach. I feel like throwing up. Dimitri runs closer to the camera on his side and yells. Vincent repeats his actions four more times. Tear runs down my cheeks.

"Please stop. Please! I will make the Queen see reason." Dimitri begs. Robert holds his hand up, stopping Vincent from taking another swing. Robert places his hand under his chin in a thinking way.

"You will just have to break him out yourself if the Queen doesn't budge." Alberta and Dimitri look at each other then back at us. Alberta starts to shake her head and I really wish she didn't. Vincent hits me four more times, two on my bleeding stomach and two on my still sore back. How am I supposed to sleep tonight? I beg Vincent to stop when he wants to take another swing.

"It's up to you if Rosemarie lives or dies. You have two weeks." And with that, Robert ends the call.

"You know, this will go a lot easier for you if they just do as I say." Robert says to me and then he and Vincent leaves the room. They didn't even untie me.

 _Please hurry Dimitri!_ I think as I let the darkness overtake my eyes.

Xxx

 **Two weeks later**

I sit on the bed when Vincent and Robert walks into the room. in the past two weeks I have been beaten and tortured to the max. my body can't take much more and neither can my soul. I'm tired and broken. I just want to close my eyes and never wake up again. I want to be with Lissa. Dimitri and Alberta answer the call immediately. They still haven't had any luck with the Queen. She just doesn't want to safe me by letting Victor free. She told Dimitri that I'm just one dhampir, if Victor gets free, he could hurt the whole moroi world. Dimitri grows more hopeless after every call. Seeing me being tortured is killing him slowly.

"Oh Roza." Dimitri lets my nickname slip. A tear rolls down my cheek. Vincent grabs my arm and take me to the rope. He put a chair under the rope and makes me stand on it. Vincent ties the rope around my neck. I gasp as I fully understand what he is doing. They are going to hang me.

This is it.

This is where I, Rose Hathaway, is going to die and the love of my life is going to witness it. Dimitri's eyes grow wide as he too, understands what is happening.

"Now, I have grown tired of making empty threats. Whipping Rosemarie is clearly not doing anything to help me out so now death is the only way to get what I want." Vincent lightly kicks the chair under me and it shifts. I cry out as fear runs through my body.

"Will you break my brother out of prison or not?" Robert asks them. Alberta looks panicked.

"We can't…" Vincent kicks the chair lightly again.

"Dimitri!" I cry out as tears flow freely over my cheeks.

"I'm sorry about what I said the last time we talked. I was stupid." Robert nods at Vincent who kicks the chair again, making me shut up.

"Last time, will you…"

"He is in a highly guarded prison, we will not be able to get him out." Alberta cut Robert off. He gives out a overly dramatic sigh.

"Well then you leave me no choice." Vincent kicks the chair out from under my feet. My air supply gets cut off immediately. I try to suck in air, but its useless. I can hear Dimitri yelling.

"I'll do it. Get her down. I'll do it." Vincent cuts the rope and I fall to the floor. Air fills my lungs painfully slow. I loom up at the screen. Dimitri is looking at me, making sure I was okay.

"I'll do it for you Roza."

 _Please review..._


	17. Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

 **Dimitri POV.**

 _What the hell have I gotten myself in to._ I think to myself as I fall down in my bed. Killing one hundred and ten strigoi single handily would be easy to save Roza, but breaking Victor out of a highly secure prison. Even I have my limits. But this is Roza I'm talking about. Our last conversation appears in my head. She told me that we should go our separate ways. But I'm sure she didn't mean it. when I get her back, and I do mean _when,_ we will talk about that conversation. I just can't give up without a fight. Roza means too much to me. A light knock on the door makes me stand up from my bed. My grandmother enters my room when I open the door. She has her weird witch expression on her face.

"It doesn't matter what you do for that man. Rose will die no matter what." My eyes stretch wide. How did she know about this whole thing? Nobody except The Queen, Alberta and myself knows about this.

"No, he said that if I get Victor out, then he will give Rose back to me." My grandmother stays quite for a few seconds while she thinks.

"Maybe, but if you do that, the Queen will execute you and that will kill Rose as well. We need to be smart about this." I raise one of my eyebrows at her.

"We? Babushka, you can't…" My phone ringing cuts my sentence short. It's Alberta. She probably wants to tell me that I can't go through with this thing. She loves Rose like a daughter, but she is devoted to her job. I was devoted to my job as well, but then I met Rose.

"Belikov, the Queen is in my office and she want to see you. Now." Alberta ends the call without giving me a chance to reply. I excuse myself from my grandmother and make my way to see the Queen. I hope this isn't more bad news.

"Your Majesty." I bow my head slightly in her direction when I enter Alberta's office. I give a nod in Alberta's direction as well.

"I'm not going to beat around the bush. I have thought a lot about what you said. Contrary to some peoples believes, I care for Rose and I have a very important task for her. I need her alive. But we can not let Victor run free. I'm here to listen to any suggestions."

My jaw nearly hits the floor. She _cares_ about Rose. She has never shown it. I don't think Rose knows it. I chew on my thumb nail as I think of a plan. It needs to be fool proof. We have to plan it very well and it needs to go over with out a glitch. The door opening pulls all the attention to the person walking in. I sigh in frustration as my grandmother makes her appearance.

"I have a plan." The Queen turns her head sideways as she looks at my grandmother. I open my mouth to protest, but my scary babushka sends me a look that clearly says: don't mess with me boy. How did she have the power to still make me feel like a ten year only boy with my hand in the Tula Pryanik jar. Rose told me that I could make her feel like that sometimes. It's awful and I will try my best to never make her feel that way again.

"Place a tracking device on Victor. And then when we have Rose with us safely, a few guardians can just go get Victor again and Robert for kidnapping." I actually like the plan my grandmother has come up with. It could work. By the look of the Queen's face, she also thinks it can work.

"But I already told Robert that the Queen refused to let Victor go and that I would break him out." I avert my eyes when I talk about the breaking out part.

"Well, we will make it look like you broke him out. I will inform the head guard at the prison and he will make sure Victor gets to the gate where you will pick him up. I will have them plant a tracking device in Victor's skin." The Queen says as she paces the room.

"In two days, you and Alberta need to be at the prison. Get Victor and arrange a drop off where you can pick Rose up as well. Then I will have both the brothers arrested." I nod my thanks at my grandmother. She just saved the day. I look at the watch on my wrist. It's is almost time for Robert to call me.

"I will tell Robert about the plan, he is going to call me now. Thank you, Queen Tatiana." I bow slightly at her. She nods her head in my direction and leaves the office tell us the she will put the plan into action right away. I'm going to get my Roza back.

Xxx

 **Rose POV.**

Pain shoots through my whole body as sit down on the chair in front of the TV. I'm grateful that they don't need to tie me up anymore. Relieve runs through my body as I see Dimitri's face on the screen. I try to smile at him, but my lips just can't seam to form the smile.

"Did you change your mind?" Robert asks Dimitri with one eyebrow raised. Dimitri shakes his head.

"No, I have a plan. Guardian Petrov and I will have Victor with us soon." Hope fills me from my head to my toes. I just knew he will safe me. He will always be there for me, no matter what. Maybe we can adopt if he really wants children.

"That is excellent, truly brilliant. Now I just need to give you some… motivation to get the job done sooner rather than later. Vincent." My eyes land on Vincent just as he leans towards me. his hands roam over my body in the most inappropriate way ever and he brings his mouth to my ear.

"I have wanted to taste you since I laid my eyes on you." My scream is cut short when Vincent's fangs pierce my neck. The high feeling, I felt when Lissa drank from me is nothing compared to this. This feels like pure bliss. Vincent's hands rest on my breasts while he drinks my blood. A small moan of pleasure escapes my lips. In the back of my mind, I know this is wrong but this just felt so right.

"Stop you fu…" Robert cuts off Dimitri's sentence and Vincent pulls away from me. I lean back in the chair, weak from blood loss and the bliss feeling.

"Everyday that my brother isn't with me, Vincent will have his way with Rosemarie. Now it just drinking her blood but tomorrow, well he may want her in another way." Robert laughs in a dark, twisted way. He walks towards the TV when Dimitri stops him.

"We need to set a place to meet." Robert thinks Dimitri's words over.

"How about the old academy in Canada? St Francis?" Dimitri nods his head.

"In three days at sun down. Can I please just get a moment alone with Rose?" Robert looks at me for a moment longer than I like and nods his head. When he and Vincent leave the room, Dimitri speaks.

"Oh Roza. Just hang in there. I will be with you in no time." I nod at Dimitri unable to speak.

"I love you Roza. When this is over, we will have our happily ever after."

"I can't wait." I say as the bliss feeling takes over my mind.

 _i hope you liked it._


	18. Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18

I have been in a daze for the past two days. Vincent has had his way with me in every way except one. In a way I know that I'm lucky that he hasn't tried that yet. He hasn't come in yet and that gave me some time to clear my head. I can think straight for the first time in two days. Today is the day that I will be with Dimitri again.

"Come!" I stand up quickly when Vincent enters my room and motions for me to follow him. I try my hardest to keep up with him. The car ride is long and uneventful. I'm glad that neither Robert or Vincent is paying much attention to me. Hope fills me as the car stops in front of a rather large church-like building. Vincent turns the car around to make the back of the car face the front of the building. Vincent grabs my arm roughly and pulls me out of the car. Fifteen minutes tick by before I see another car driving up to us. Robert motions for them to stop when they are about twenty feet away from us. My heart and stomach do a double flip when I see Dimitri getting out of the car. He looks tense and ready for action. I can feel the adrenaline rushing through my veins, even though I'm in a weaken state. Disgust rolls through me as victor makes his appearance. This time the emotions are all me. He looks twenty years older than the last time I saw him. His sickness really has taken its toll on him.

Good.

He deserves to be sick.

"Well, well, well. Look who came through for you Rosemarie. Your illegal lover." Robert takes a few steps forward. I want to reach out and kick his yellowing teeth in. Dimitri clenches his fists at Robert's comment. Alberta probably heard that, and she is going to give us an ear full on the way home.

"This is how it's going to work. You will release my brother and then when he is safe by my side. I will allow Rosemarie to go to you."

"No way in hell. Give us Rose first, then we will give you Victor." Dimitri says in his mentor voice. He is not one to mess with when he uses that tone. Robert scoffs.

"How can I be sure that you will give me Victor when you have her?" Dimitri glares at Robert.

"The same goes for you. Let me bring him over to you and then I will take Rose." Robert thinks Dimitri's words over for a few seconds and then he nods his head. Dimitri grabs Victor by his arm crudely and starts to walk towards us. Robert nods at Vincent who kicks the back of my right knee, making me fall to the floor.

"Don't you manhandle my brother." Robert warns Dimitri. He lets go of Victor immediately, afraid that they will hurt me again. Victor has a smug smile on his face that I would like to slap off.

"Hello brother, I knew you would come through for me. And by using Rosemarie. Now that was a smart move." Victor glances at me as I try to stand up. My knee hurts like a bitch. Dimitri helps me up.

"Now, I would just like to thank you. It was a pleasure doing business with you." Robert and Victor turns towards their car and starts to walk away from us. I lean on Dimitri as we make our way towards the other vehicle. Almost there, almost safe.

"Say hello to Vasilisa for me." Victor says as they stop their car next to us on my side. Before I could reply to his sick comment, he pulls out a gun and pulls the trigger. Everything happened in slow motion. Dimitri was a second to slow to jump in front of me and the car drove away before anyone could do something. The impact of the bullet sends me flying back, into Dimitri's arms. He puts me down on the ground lightly and uses his duster as a pillow for my head. He is shouting at Alberta, but I can't focus on his words. I try very hard to lift my hand and place it on his cheek. He places his hand over mine to keep my hand in place. Tears run over his cheeks.

"Please Roza, no. Stay, I need you." Dimitri begs. I have never heard someone beg for me this much. I try to give him a reassuring smile, but blood ruses up my throat and spills out of my mouth. I nearly choke on the blood. My hand on Dimitri's cheek feels heavy just like my eyelids. Maybe I should just let them rest for a while.

"No, open your eyes Roza. Please." I try, but they are to heavy. I can feel the darkness pulling me away. I give in and bask in the darkness. Nothing is painful here. I feel light and free.

"Rose, open your eyes." I hear Lissa's voice. _Lissa?_ I open my eyes, they don't feel so heavy anymore. I look around. This looks like a spirit dream that Adrian always pulls me into. I'm in a meadow with a small pond and trees for days. The grass is green and lush. I stand up and turn in a circle. Lissa is standing behind me. I run to her and hug her. It feels amazing to be able to touch her.

"Am I dead?" I ask her, but I already know the answer. If I wasn't, then I wouldn't be able to touch her. Lissa shakes her head, which confuses me a little.

"No, well yes. But, you are not completely dead. You can go back. I can send you back. But before I do, there is something I need to tell you." Lissa leads me to a nearby bench. We sit down next to each other. She takes my hands in hers and smiles at me. I missed her so much.

"I figured it out. The darkness that you feel and the strange emotions and voices. When I died, all the darkness I had in me, rushed into you. You need to find a way to take the darkness out of you."

"The pills…" Lissa cuts me off gently.

"Those pills only numb the darkness. They don't take it away. you have to work with a spirit user to figure it out. Maybe make a charm or a spell." I nod at her. I could always ask Adrian to help me. Dimitri is not going to like that idea. But this means I can stop taking the pills. I can have my relationship with him again to the max.

"I guess Adrian and I can see what we can do." Lissa looks deep in thought.

"No, Adrian will not be able to help you for long. You need a user who is more experienced. Try finding other spirit users." I nod my head again at her. I will try.

"Rose, this is not something that can wait. The darkness is feeding off of your grief, it's growing. Your mind can only take so much. One of these days, soon, it's going to be to much and it will take you down with it." Lissa squeezes my hand. By 'take you down' she means kill me.

"I will try Lissa. I promise."

"Okay. We can not see each other anymore. You need to deal with the darkness and you have to keep an eye on my sister." My jaw nearly hit the ground.

"How do you…"

"I know things. That doesn't matter now. Just take care of her and Christian. And remember, I'm happy where I am. I will see you again but not anytime soon. I love you Rose." We stand up and wrap our arms around one another. I never want to let her go, but she is right. I have too much to do on earth and she is happy with her family. I will be with her, when the time is right.

"I love you to Liss. I'm ready, send me home." Lissa places both her hands on my head and smiles at me.

"I will send you back with a little gift from the heavens." I didn't even get the chance to question her about her peculiar words. A bright white light absorbs me and pushes me back, away from my best friend.

 **Dimitri POV**

"Say hello to Vasilisa for me." Victor's words caught me of guard. I didn't react fast enough when he pulls out a gun and shoots Rose. I catch her falling body and sink to the floor. I used my duster as a pillow for her to rest her head on.

"Help me! Get the car ready." I shout at Alberta. She jumps into action immediately, opening the back door and getting into the driver seat, starting the car. Rose lifts her hand to my cheek. I place my hand over hers. She is getting weaker.

"Please Roza, no. Stay, I need you." I beg her. Her eyes are dropping fast, and she is slipping away right in front of me. Tears fall freely over my cheeks.

"No, open your eyes Roza. Please." I shake her lightly, but her eyes fall shut and her hand on my cheek turns into dead weight. She needs to get to a hospital now. I lift her up and carry her to the car. Alberta steps on the gas when I get into the car with Rose. She cannot die, not like this and not now. Her words from earlier comes back to me. When she saw Lissa's dead body, she cried that she didn't have enough time with her and that she wanted more. Now I fully understand her words. I want, no, I need more time with her. I want to make all her dreams come true and make her happy. Without her, I will just go back to the man I was before she came into my life. I thought losing Ivan was hard. He was my best friend, I shared everything with him. I would have happily given my life for his. But just the thought of losing Rose, my Roza, this pain and fear is much worse.

"How far?" I bark at Alberta. She looks at the GPS device and sighs.

"Forty-five more minutes. Is she still?" I feel for a pulse in her neck. There is nothing. Not even a small beat.

"She has to be fine. Just drive, faster." Alberta steps on the gas some more. I hug Rose tight to my chest and burry my face in her hair.

"Please baby. Come back to me." I whisper in her ear. I repeat that sentence a few more times. She needs to come back to me.

"Baby? That is a new one." I pull back from her and look down at her. Rose is looking back at me with her beautiful brown eyes. I gently wipe a few strands of hair out of her face. I look down at her chest. The bleeding has stopped completely, and it looks like the wound is gone as well.

"My eyes are up here Comrade." I look back up at her face. She has her radiant smile on her face. A sob escapes my lips before I can stop it. I will never let her go again. I pull her to my chest again.

"Oh Roza." I say as I place butterfly kisses all over her face.

"What is happening Belikov?" Alberta asks from the front. I pull away from Rose.

"Rose is fine." I try to keep my voice neutral, but it's hard.

"You can slow down, unless you want us to die in a car crash." Alberta slows down to the normal speed limit and lets out a breath.

"How, we are still going to the hospital." I agree with Alberta but Rose protests.

"No. let's go home. I will see Dr Olendzki if that will make you happy." After a few minutes of arguing, we finally gave into Rose and agreed to take her to the school's infirmary. This girl is going to be the death of me.

 _Okay so Rose is safe from Vincent and Robert but now she has an enemy that only she can fight. The darkness. Will she get the help she needs before it destroys her? And what gift did Lissa leave her? The first person who figures it out will be a character in the story. chop chop. I want to post the new chapter in a few days._

 _Love Crazyvampxoxo_


	19. Chapter 19

_Sorry for the long wait... Here it is!_

CHAPTER 19

 **Rose POV**

Dr Olendzki raises her eyebrow as she gives me one last once-over. She looks confused.

"There isn't even a mark. Are you sure you got shot?" She asks me. I roll my eyes at her.

"Yes, Doc. Can I go now. Like you see, I'm fine." She shines her light into my eyes for the tenth time.

"You can go as soon as I have your blood test results. I'm going to go make fire under them, stay here Rose." She gives me a pointed look before she leaves the room. I let out a big sigh as I mull over Lissa's words. 'A gift from the heavens'- what does that even mean. I pat my hand on my back. No, nothing feels weird so that means I didn't get wings. I laugh out loud. Wings would be cool, but I doubt they would give me a pair.

"What is so funny?" My eyes snap up to the direction of the door. Dimitri is leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest. He doesn't have his duster on.

"Where is your coat Sheriff?" I ask. Dimitri looks down at his body. His face falls when he realises that he doesn't have it on.

"I must have left it at St Francis when you… But it is fine." I look down at my hands in my lap. He left it on the floor when he picked me up and ran to the car. It is my fault that he doesn't have his duster.

"How are you feeling?" He asks me. I look back at him. He is still standing at the door. I know that he can't come over to me and embrace me, but would it hurt him to just be a bit closer to me.

"Okay, I guess." Dimitri nods his head. He looks around the room for a few seconds before his eyes land on me again. He looks unsure about something.

"We need to talk about the last conversation we had…" A light bulb flickers in my mind. That is why he looks so unsure. The last time we talked, I told him that I was letting him go. He must know that I don't really feel that way. He should know me better than I know myself.

"Rose, we have a slight problem… oh Guardian Belikov, I didn't know you were in here." Dr Olendzki looks at Dimitri and then at me. What did she say about a problem? I hope it's nothing serious.

"What is the problem?" Dimitri ask her.

"I'm sorry Guardian Belikov, but I cannot discuss Rose's medical situation with you. If you could leave…" Dimitri was about to protest when I held up my hand to stop him.

"As you can see, I'm fine. You can leave Guardian Belikov. Thank you for being concerned about me." Dimitri glares at me. He actually _glares_ at me. Does he want the good doctor to know about us? Dimitri leaves the room abruptly.

"Well Rose, I'm not going to beat around the bush. There is something very peculiar about your blood." She walks towards me and shows me a piece of paper with a lot of lines and numbers on it. I have no clue what I should be seeing.

"This is your latest blood results. And this…" She hands me another piece of paper. The second paper looks very different from the first one. The second one is more even, while the first one's lines are all over the place.

"This is your blood test we took a month ago. This is how a normal dhampir's blood work looks like. And this." She points to the first paper with the uneven lines.

"Is how a moroi's blood work looks like. It seems your whole DNA changed. Did something happen when you died?" My eyes stretch wide and I nod my head.

"I saw Lissa. She said that she is going to send me back to earth with a gift. What does this mean?" Dr Olendzki excuses herself and runs out of the room. I just stare at the papers in my hand and wait for her to return.

"This is Vasilisa's blood work." She hands me the new paper. It looks identical to the first on she gave me. My blood work looks like Lissa's blood work now.

"This makes you more moroi than dhampir. Do you know what this means Rose? You are very special. The Queen is going to what to see this." I have never been this confused in my whole life. What does this mean exactly?

"Rose, you have to be careful now. If you sleep with a dhampir, the chances of you getting pregnant is good." My jaw nearly hits the ground. I can have a baby with a dhampir? I can have a baby with Dimitri! I jump up from the bed, almost knocking down Dr Olendzki.

"I have to go now." Dr Olendzki grabs my arm to stop me.

"Rose, we need to show the Queen this."

"Sure, you show her and if she wants to talk to me, I will gladly talk to her." I can't keep the smile off of my face. I can give Dimitri everything he wants. We can be together. I run to the gym in the hopes that I will find him there. I stop for a few seconds when I see him beating the dust out of a practice dummy. My smile grows wider. I run towards him. He turns around in time to catch me as I jump into his arms. I wrap my legs around his waist and kiss him. I pull away and look him in the eyes.

"I can do it. I can make you happy now." Dimitri raises one eyebrow. I kiss his cheek a few times and just pull him closer to me.

"Lissa gave me a gift. I can have children with you." Dimitri freezes at my words. I jump down from him and take his hands in mine.

"When I died, Lissa send me back, but she said that she is going to leave me a gift. She gave me the ability to get pregnant with a dhampir. I thought you would be happy…" Dimitri shuts my sentence off with his lips on mine. He lifts me up and spins me in a circle. I laugh at the top of my lungs. I don't think I have ever been this happy.

"Uh, sorry to interrupt, but the headmistress wants to see you Rose." I let go of Dimitri and turn to the door. A novice in my year, Peter, is standing at the door. He looks rather uncomfortable. He is a very shy guy and I don't think he will tell anyone about seeing me in Dimitri's arms. I wave at Dimitri and follow Peter out of the gym. I glance up at him. His eyes are set straight in front of him. I have seen him fight a few times in class. He is very good, but I think I could take him.

"Thanks Peter, what do you say you and I have a one-on-one when classes start again after the field experience?" I ask him when we stop in front of Kirova's office. Peter smiles at me and nods his head. I take a deep breath as I enter the dragon's den. Kirova looks up at me when I enter. I quickly notice that the Queen is also present. I bow my head slightly in her direction. I didn't even know she is on campus.

"Rose, please take a seat." Kirova points to the chair next to her. The Queen is sitting in Kirova's chair. I sit down and look at the Queen.

"Dr Olendzki showed us the tests she did, it is rather unique. Nothing I have ever seen. This makes you very special Rose, more special than Kira." The Queen gives me a pointed look. Wow, I'm more special than the last Dragomir Princess. Never saw that one coming. I look at the Queen with both of my eyebrows raised.

"This means you are no longer a dhampir, you are now a moroi, not just any moroi, but a royal." My jaw detaches it self from my face and falls to the floor. Where is she getting all this from? I am not royal. And I am not a moroi.

"You will be treated like any other royal moroi from now on. You will take the Dragomir family name as it was Vasilisa who gave you this gift." I start to protest, but the Queen cuts me off.

"Bring them in." She speaks to Kirova, who jumps to her feet and leaves the office.

"You are going to need at least three guardian's and we will make this new news public at the graduation along with Kira." Her tone of voice tells me that this is not something to be argued with, but me being me, well I never listen.

"Why three? There are others who doesn't even get one. I will agree to everything you want if I can only get one guardian and Christian gets one." The Queen thinks my words over and after a few seconds she nod her head. Kirova enters the office again followed by five guardians. Dimitri, Alberta and my mother looks at me. The other two guardians, I think their names are Debbie Prescot and Daniel MacGyver, looks at the Queen.

"Choose who you want Rose." The Queen motions to the guardians as she speaks to me. My eyes fall on my mother. She looks confused, they all do.

"Your Majesty, I you don't mind me asking, what is this all about." My mother asks. The Queen stands and walks toward me. she motions for me to stand as well and we face the guardians together.

"Rose is a very special girl and she needs a guardian. Now I have hand picked you lot and now I leave it to her to pick the one she wants." The Queen nods her head in my direction. I look at my options again. Dimitri gives me a pointed look. He wants me to pick him. I look at my mother again and she gives me the same look that Dimitri is giving me. She wants me to pick her as well. This is not going to end well.

"I want Guardian…"

 _Who will she choose?_


	20. Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

"I want Guardian…" My mother takes a step forward.

"I request to be Rose's guardian. She is my daughter and I personally don't think any body will look after her better than I will." The Queen places her hand under her chin in a thinking manner. I was about to protest, to tell them both that it was my decision, but Dimitri beat me to it. He stands next to my mother. The other three guardians is long forgotten.

"I have to disagree with Guardian Hathaway. I am Rose's mentor and I was going to be her colleague before the princess… I know Rose and therefore I will be the better option. I think I proved that when she was kidnapped." My mother glares at Dimitri. Now, normally I would cower under that intense glare, but Dimitri is standing firm. He is not going to let her intimidate him.

"If someone had just told me about the kidnapping, then I would have gotten her back. The kidnapping proves nothing." Dimitri clenches his fists and his jaw. My mother is testing his control and not in the fun way I do. She is pissing him off. I look over at the Queen and see that she is enjoying this as much as I am.

"You have never been in Rose's life…" My mother takes a threatening step towards Dimitri. I actually fear for his life. I intervene by standing between the two before serious damage could be done.

"Okay listen, both of you, this is my decision. And I will choose who I want. And when I do, it doesn't mean that I value the one I choose above the other one. Both of you are important to me." I look at my mother and then at Dimitri. They need to know that I love them both. In a way they are very much alike when it comes to my love. I have loved them both since I met them, but they both rejected my love in the beginning.

"I want Guardian Belikov as my Guardian, but I would like for my mother to be Christian's guardian." I look at the Queen. She nods her head. My mother looks at me with hurt clear in her eyes. I don't think I have ever seen hurt in her eyes.

"That is if Guardian Hathaway wants that." I look at my mother.

"This way you can still be near me. Christian needs a guardian." My mother gives a curt nod. She is still clearly pissed. The Queen dismisses my mother and the other guardian. She needs to talk to me and Dimitri.

"Now, Rose will continue this year as normal. She will graduate as a guardian. At the graduation I will announce that Rose will stand in for the Dragomir line. From then on, Rose will no longer be seen as a dhampir. There is only two weeks left of the field test and after that it is two weeks until graduation. Enjoy your freedom Rose. After graduation, your life will change." The Queen tells me and Dimitri. I nod my head at her. I always knew my life was going to be difficult and challenging, but I never saw this coming.

"Take care of her Belikov." I almost burst out laughing. I never thought I would see the day that the Queen would show any kind of concern for me. This day was going into my memory book.

Xxx

"Mom, can I talk to you?" I approach my mother slowly. She still looks pissed. For the first time since I was born, my mother shrugs her shoulders. Shrugging is a thing normal people do, but my mother makes it look better. It looks weird when she does it. She is always so sure about things.

"There is a reason I want Dimitri to be my guardian." _Because I am in love with him and we plan on spending a lot of time in the bed room._ I add in my head. But I don't think she wants to know that just yet.

"Dimitri, I trust him with my whole heart. Not that I don't trust you, but I know you were meant to be a guardian to someone who actually needs you. Not that I don't need you, you are my mother… I just." My mother looks at me. Her facial expression has turned softer. She doesn't look pissed off anymore.

"I understand that I haven't been the best mother, but I want to be in your life Rose." I place my hand over hers. I want that to, more than she ever knows.

"Let's start over. A fresh chapter." My mother nods and smiles at me.

"I would love that, but there is something else. Your father wants to meet you." I'm sure my face portraits my shock perfectly. My father. It feels weird ever thinking about it. I have never had a father, never needed one.

"Do I have to?" I ask my mother.

"Yes Rosemarie, he really wants to be a part of your life. He has always been. I just thought it was better to keep you away."

"Why?" I couldn't wrap my brain around this information. He wanted to know me? No moroi wants to know their dhampir children.

"Your father, his job is very dangerous. I wanted to protect you against his enemies. He tried to understand, but he always asked me to meet you." I nod my head at her. He wanted me. that is all I ever wanted. I just wanted to be wanted.

"When can I meet him?" My mother pulls out her cell phone and checks her messages.

"He will be here in two weeks." In two weeks, the field test will be over, perfect timing.

Xxx

"I have to make the final choices tonight. Want to help me?" Kira asks me. I stand up from my bed and walk over to her. She needs to decide which photos she will send in for her 'field test'. I help her pick the best pictures and she sends them in. today has been exhausting. First the Queen, then my conversation with my mother. I haven't even been able to talk to Dimitri. I miss him.

"There is something I need to tell you. I died, but Lissa send me back. She sent me back more moroi than dhampir. You and I will be the remaining Dragomir's." Kira leaves everything she is doing and stares at me with wide eyes. I decided to just rip off the band-aid. She needs to know that we will technically be family after graduation.

"We are going to be sisters?" She asks. I nod my head.

"Who will be the Princess?" I shrug my shoulders. I haven't thought about that.

"I have no idea, but you can keep that roll. I don't think I will make the best princess." Kira shakes her head.

"No please, you will be much better at it than me." My protests about being princess is cut short by three guardians in black breaking into our room. Alberta slides in through the window and Stan and Dimitri breaks the door open. I push Kira into the corner and stand in front of her protectively. Three pairs of eyes watch me intensely. Could they seriously not just give me a gap?

"Really guys, kicking a girl while she is down?" I ask. They don't even look sorry. I see Alberta getting ready to attack. I block her easily. Dimitri joins her. Fighting Alberta or Dimitri has always been a challenge for me because they are amazing guardian but fighting them together. Well, let's just say, I'm struggling more than I like to admit. I try to keep my eyes on Kira as well. She needs to stay protected. Dimitri tackles me to the floor, but I get up faster than he thought I would. Stan makes a move for Kira. Lissa flashes in my mind. I can not let him get to her. I stretch my hand out towards Kira. For a second it looks like a translucent veil is being dropped over her. Dimitri and Alberta could see it as well. Stan goes to grab Kira by her arm, but as soon as he touches her, he gets knocked back with a great force. I grab the opportunity I have and stake Alberta and Dimitri. They both look shocked beyond believe.

"Did I do that?" Kira asks when the action dies down. Stan recovers quickly and joins us in front of Kira. I look down at my hands. They feel funny and they are glowing like the veil that fell over Kira. The veil is gone now.

"No, I think Rose did." Alberta touches my hand. The glowing starts to fade.

"What is happening?" I ask, but no one can give me an answer. Dimitri looks at me concerned.

"Are you feeling okay?" I nod my head.

"Yeah, I just… when I saw Guardian Alto reach for Kira. I saw Lissa and that I needed to save her. You guys saw that glowing around her right?" They all nod their heads. Great, I'm not going crazy.

"Maybe, just maybe, you acquired magic when you came back. If you are now more moroi…" Alberta let her sentence hang in the air between us. I look at her. She may be right. But what magic could make like a force field around someone.

"What type of magic was that?" Stan shrugs.

"It could have been air." He suggests. Kira nods her head.

"Yeah, it was easier to breath when that… happened." Could this be? Could I have magic now? But why air? Lissa wasn't an air user.

"Maybe, can we get some rest now?" I ask the guardians. Alberta and Stan leave the room, still shocked to their core. Dimitri lingers at the door.

"Kira, I will be right back." I follow Dimitri out of the room and shut the door.

"What does this mean?" I ask him.

"I think it means that you have just become much more special Rose. The Queen is going to want to know about this." I shake my head.

"No, she is going to make me take moroi classes if she knows. Maybe I don't have powers. Let me just figure it out by myself please. Before we tell the Queen." Dimitri looks deep in thought.

"I will ask Stan and Alberta to keep this quiet, but I will not let you figure this out on your own. We are in this together, if you still want me." I nod my head at him.

"I think it is time we talked about everything. Tomorrow at the cabin." Dimitri smiles a small smile.

"At curfew." He cups my cheek with his hand before he walks away. Tomorrow we need to talk about everything. All our insecurities, worries and plans for the future. I need to tell him about the darkness Lissa warned me about.

 _I hope you love it, I loved writing it. Reviews please._


	21. Chapter 21

_Hope you like it..._

CHAPTER 21

"I wish I could explain to you how it felt. I know now that it wasn't me, but still…" I place my hand on Kira's mouth. She just will not stop talking about last night. This morning at breakfast, she told Christian and at lunch she talked about it with Eddie, Mia and Adrian. Now at dinner she was at it again. I didn't really want anyone to know about it. I guess I should have told her that. I take my small break to grab my food.

"Hey Rose, how are you doing?" I turn around in the food line to face Adrian. I haven't talked to one of my friends since I've been back. Well it has just been two days, but I still miss them. Adrian studies me intensely. He must be checking out my aura. Should I tell him what Lissa told me now or should I wait until I have told Dimitri. I should probably wait.

"I'm doing okay. How about you?" Adrian focuses on my face again. He gives me his lazy grin.

"Much better now that you are safe. So, about this magic…"

"Can we talk about this some other time. I just want to be Rose again and worry about whatever happened another day." Adrian nods his head and leaves me to grab some food. I walk back to the table when my friends are sitting. I'm glad that they welcomed Kira and that we all sit together now during meal times. I leave Lissa's seat open and sit next to Adrian. Kira is sitting pretty close to Christian and they are in a whispered conversation. Christian tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear. Could it be? Were they…

No!

He wouldn't do that. He is still mourning Lissa. I try to ignore what I'm seeing, but it is hard. They are all but kissing. I push my tray away from me. I have lost my appetite. Adrian is studying me closely again. I stand up and poke Kira on her shoulder.

"Let's go." Kira stands up reluctantly and follows me out of the cafeteria. We walk in silence for a few minutes.

"What is going on with you and Christian?" I ask suddenly. Kira looks anywhere but at me.

"N-nothing. Why? Did he say something about me?" I stop walking and grab her arm.

"No and he will not. He is still mourning Lissa. His girlfriend. There can never be anything between you two. So just forget…"

"You have no right speaking for me Rose." I turn around at the sound of Christian's voice. Kira's cell phone in his hand. I turn fully towards him.

"Are you saying that you want to shack up with Kira?" I ask outraged. Christian looks at Kira and then back at me.

"Maybe and its not shacking up. I may have feeling for her."

"You do? I have feelings for you to." Kira says, she lights up like a Christmas tree.

"Oh hell no. Lissa hasn't even been dead for a year. Lissa wouldn't want…"

"Lissa would want me to be happy Rose." Christian interrupts me. My mouth bobs open like a fish out of water. He is really ready to move on, just like that.

"Just because I started to get feelings for someone else doesn't mean that I don't love Lissa anymore. She will always be my first love and she will always be in my heart." It feels like my heart is going to beat out of my chest and my breathing feels limited. Is this a panic attack? I throw my hands up in the air and fire shoots out from my fingertips. I pull my hands to my chest and look at them. They are both looking at me with wide eyes.

"Wow, Rose really has magic." Christian says flabbergasted. Kira nods her head.

"I have to go." I turn around and run in the direction of the cabin. Curfew is in two hours. I arrive at the cabin and fall down on the chair. I have magic. But what magic do I have. First it was air and now I did fire. I slid from the chair to the ground and crawl to the fire place.

"How do I do this?" I ask myself. I picture the wood lighting up with flames. I close my eyes and focus everything I have on that image. Nothing. I stretch my hand out towards the wood and picture the fire again. Heat licks my hand. Small flames light up the wood. It is not what I imagined, but it is close enough. I make a sweeping motion with my hand and picture the flames being blown out. At first nothing happens. I repeat the motion a few more times. Just before I could feel silly, the flames die.

That is air and fire.

I search the cabin for a pot plant or something to see if I have earth magic as well.

"Well, well, well. Tasha is a very busy lady." I pick up the string of condoms in the bathroom cabinet. This could come in use now. I have never had to buy condoms before. I stuff the condoms into my pocket. I exit the cabin and sit next to the small pond. The one where Lissa, Tasha and Christian ice-skated on last Christmas. I twirl my hand in a circle above the water. Like with the air, it takes a few attempts before it works. I create a small tornado in the water without actually touching it. I command that water to lift up with my mind and hands. A small amount of water lifts up out of the pond. I hold it in the air. This is amazing.

"Какого черта?" The water drops back into the pond when I turn to look at Dimitri. His eyes are wide, and his mouth is hanging open. I stand up and walk over to him.

"Roza, what was that?" He asks me. I should feel freaked out that I can now do magic, but I just feel excited.

"I was arguing with Christian when something happened. I shot fire out of my hands. I wanted to see if I could do water as well. The only elements left is earth and spirit." Dimitri takes my hands in his and rubs his thumbs over my knuckles.

"Rose, maybe we should tell the Queen. If you have to take moroi classes, then you will know how to control the magic." I nod my head at him. He is right. I need to learn how to control this. Dimitri looks taken back at me agreeing to his suggestion.

"Is that it? No fighting me on this." I shake my head.

"No. I think it's a good idea." Dimitri looks at me for a few more seconds then he lets out a sigh.

"Come on, we need to talk." Dimitri laces his fingers with mine. We walk into the cabin together.

"Okay, where would you like to start?" I ask him. Dimitri starts to light a fire in the fire-place. We both sit down in front of the fire.

"Let's start with that awful conversation we had before you were taken." I nod my head at Dimitri and wait for him to start talking. After a few seconds I realise he is waiting for me to talk.

"Okay. Well, you see, when I saw you holding that baby. I just knew that you were destined to be a father and at the time, I couldn't give that to you. I wanted you to have a family you dream about. That is why I told you to take Tasha's offer." Dimitri nods his head as he thinks about my words.

"I understand now, but Rose, the only person I want a family with is you. I made my piece with the fact that we can never or that we could never have a baby. I just want you." I take his hand in mine and kiss his knuckles.

"But now I can give you me and a family." I laugh. Dimitri pulls me closer to him. He rests his forehead against mine.

"You would have been enough. Just, please, never do that to me again." I nod my head. I will never hurt him like that again. I will make his proud of me. Dimitri leans in to kiss me, but I put my finger against his lips. I need to tell him about the darkness first.

"There is still something I need to tell you. Something important. Lissa figured out why I didn't have a handle on my emotions. When she died, all her darkness transferred into me. The darkness is busy consuming me Dimitri. It can kill me." Dimitri sits up straight and runs his hands through his hair.

"How can we stop it?" I smile at him. He will always want to protect me. Well I am his charge now. It's his job,

"Lissa told me that I need to get an advanced spirit user to make me a charm. We need to look for another spirit user." Dimitri nods his head at me again.

"I think there is one in my hometown. We will need to get permission to go and see her." I agree with him. Adrian can come with us to learn something from her. We could make a whole trip out of this. All my friends could come.

"Christian and Kira like each other." I say after a few seconds of silence. Dimitri looks thoughtful for several moments.

"Maybe she can help him deal with Lissa's death." I look at him with wide eyes. Deal with her death. No. he can't be ready to move on now.

"I know you think it is to soon, but some people need other people to help them heal. Don't you want him to be happy?" I sigh then nod my head. Of course, I want him to be happy. He is one of my best friends.

"I, it is just so soon." Dimitri caresses my cheek with the back of his hand.

"Just because he is developing feelings for her doesn't mean that he loves Lissa less. If something happened to me, I would want you to find happiness with someone. Wouldn't you want that for me?" I shake my head.

"No, I have to be your one and only." I laugh. I would obviously want him to be happy. Even if that meant he was with someone else. He smiles his rare smile at me and leans in again. This time I let him kiss me. I have missed his kisses so much. I pull out the condoms from my pocket and hold it up for him to see.

"I think that we need to practice if we want to start a family one day." Dimitri laughs.

"I think you are right Roza." I pull him towards me and continue our kiss.

 _Like? Dislike? Let me know._


	22. Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

"I feel stupid." I say for the tenth time today. Mia rolls her eyes. Last week I started with my moroi classes. The Queen wants me to have a handle on my magic and see what I can do. I was hesitant to attend the moroi classes because everyone would look at me and put pressure on me. The Queen suggested that I ask my friends to teach me whatever they do in their classes. So now I have five periods, one for each element. Christian and Kira teaches me fire and Mia teaches me water. I didn't have anyone to teach me air and earth, so Mia asked some of her friends. A girl named Hailey, she teaches me earth and a guy named Willis, teaches me air. He is pretty badass. He believes, like Christian, that moroi should learn to defend themselves with their magic. He asked me to teach him how I did the shield and I try my hardest to teach him. Adrian and I are starting with spirit today. He is going to teach me to dream walk tonight. Dimitri isn't very fond of the idea that Adrian and I will be alone tonight, but he needs to be on guard tonight and then he needs to sleep. He has been so stressed about me. Adrian noticed through my aura that when I use magic, the darkness grows. The Queen agreed to let us go to Russia after graduation to see that spirit user. I apologised to Kira and Christian two days ago and told them that I was out of line. They forgave me and now they are officially a couple. I wish Dimitri and I can come out already. Then we wouldn't need to sneak around after curfew anymore. Just three more weeks then it is graduation. This is the last week of the field test. I still part take but only when I don't have classes. I guess this worked out. I didn't want to be a guardian if I couldn't be Lissa's guardian and now I'm not allowed to be one. Now I need one. But I am not complaining. Having Dimitri all to myself is hardly a negative thing. We will be able to…

"Rose! Focus." Mia snaps her fingers in front of my face. I blink a couple of times and focus on the task at hand. Mia wants me to drain the water out of a plant and place the water in a glass. I sigh and repeat the hand gesture she showed me earlier. A few drops follow my hand a land in the glass.

"That is good. Nice job." I raise both my eyebrows at her. How are a few drops good?

"Some people take a month to get even one drop out. It took me three weeks to get the water to even move." I run my hands through my hair. It feels like I'm learning to slowly. I need to know how to master this magic before I graduate.

"Rose, this was good. Really good. We will continue tomorrow." I hug Mia and watch as she leaves the class room. I sit down on a chair closes to me. Christian and Kira should be here any minute now.

"How did it go today?" Dimitri appears at the door. I nearly jump ten feet into the air. I didn't expect him.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you." I roll my eyes and look at the stupid plant again.

"I just… Mia said I did good today, but it feels like I failed." Dimitri sits on the chair next to me.

"What did you have to do today?" I point at the plant.

"I had to drain the water out of the plant and transfer it to the glass." Dimitri lifts the glass to examine the water.

"Well it looks to me that you did it."

"There is a whole glass of water in the plant. I only got a few drops out." Dimitri puts the glass back on the desk and place his hand on my leg.

"Just take it day to day. You didn't know how to properly stake a strigoi until you were taught. This is just like combat training." I place my hand over his. He always knows what to say to make me feel better. I wish I can kiss him now, but Christian and Kira could walk in here at any second.

"Alberta gave me the night off, so if you want, I can join you and Adrian."

"Why did she give you off?" I ask him. Dimitri shrugs.

"She said that I needed a proper night's rest." I nod my head.

"Then that is what you are doing tonight. I will be fine. And you really need rest. You have bags under your eyes." I rub my thumb under his eye. He looks exhausted. Dimitri starts to protest, but I hold up my hand.

"I know what happened, but it will never happen again." Dimitri sighs and then nods his head.

"Okay are you… Guardian Belikov, I didn't know you are joining us." Dimitri stands up and nods his head at Christian and Kira.

"No, I was just leaving. I wanted to see how Rose is doing." Christian nods his head at Dimitri. A small awkward silence falls between us all.

"Okay, well, enjoy the lesson." Dimitri was almost out the door when Christian called him back.

"Guardian Belikov, we could actually use a guardian for this lesson. Would you mind helping?" Dimitri looks very sceptical but agrees to help us. Christian pushes the tables and chairs back.

"Now this isn't exactly what we learned today, but I thought it will help you more than the actual lesson we had." Christian motions for Dimitri to stand in the middle of the space he cleared.

"I have been working on this since we fought together in the strigoi attack. Now pretend Dimitri is the strigoi and I am a guardian." I laugh at the idea of Christian as a guardian. Dimitri and Christian both glare at me. I apologise at tell him to continue.

"I saw that you analyse the opponent before you attack. that gives the fire user the opportunity to distract the strigoi." Christian claps his hands together and then move his hands in circular motion. A ring of fire forms around Dimitri. I take a step forward to stop Christian, he could hurt Dimitri, but Dimitri holds up his hands to stop me.

"This will not hurt a moroi or a dhampir. You are in control of the fire. Remember when I set Ralph on fire, it's the same. I didn't actually burn him. But if Dimitri was a strigoi now, then the fire will hurt him." I look at Christian confused.

"While you cast the circle, you have to command it to only hurt strigoi. This will give your guardian the chance to stake the strigoi and not get hurt." Christian takes my hand and moves it around in the fire. I stare at it in amazement. The fire dies down.

"Okay your turn." Christian shows me the hand movement again and tell me to think about hurting strigoi only when I cast the circle. I repeat the hand movement three times before the fire circles Dimitri. I want to jump for joy, but Christian reminds me to stay focused. Dimitri wipes sweat off of his forehead.

"Rose, I don't think you did this right." Dimitri looks a bit panicked now.

"What?" I almost yell. That causes the fire around Dimitri to raise higher and closer to him. Dimitri lets out a yell as the fire touches his arm. Christian tells me to calm down, but I can barely hear him. I'm hurting Dimitri. I have to stop this. I look at the plant and will the water to put out the fire. for the first time today, the water actually does what I want. I run over to Dimitri and take his arm to see the damage I caused. It looks very painful.

"I'm so sorry." I repeat over and over to him. Dimitri shakes off my apologies.

"I am the one who needs to apologise. I didn't think it would go this bad Guardian Belikov. I'm sorry." Christian hands Dimitri a bottle of cold water to put over the burn. I did this. I hurt the man I love. I have to make this right. Dimitri gasps as the burn slowly starts to heal. I let go of his arm as quickly as I grabbed it. I just healed Dimitri. Healed. I posses spirit as well.

"That felt amazing." Dimitri examines his arm from every angle. I suddenly feel drained and weak.

"I have to go. I have to go lay down." Dimitri grabs my arm just as I start to fall. The dizziness in my head feels like a ton of bricks dragging me to the ground.

"I'm going to take her to her room. Tell the others that she can not continue classes today." Kira nods her head at Dimitri as he leads me out of the class room.

Xxx

"I will be fine, I will just observe. You need rest." I try for the hundredth time to convince Dimitri that I am fine and that he should go rest. I slept for two hours after I nearly fainted this morning and now I feel fine. Dimitri looks at me with one eyebrow raised.

"Okay, maybe I will try to do whatever Adrian does, but I promise, if I feel funny, I will stop and call it a night." Dimitri seems to believe that more than my earlier argument. I peck Dimitri on his lips and leave my room before he can stop me. I jog towards Adrian's room in guest housing. I'm a few minutes late thanks to Dimitri.

"I thought you weren't coming. I heard about this morning." Adrian says surprised that I showed up. This morning I proved that I could do spirit. Now I'm even more determined to learn everything I can about it. I understand Lissa's obsession with spirit now. Spirit can do amazing things and she wanted to be a part of those amazing things. Now I want to be a part of them as well.

"I'm fine. Let's start." Adrian grabs two bottles of water out of the fridge and hands me one. We sit down on his couch to start the lesson.

"Okay so what do you want to start with? Aura reading or dream walking?" Dimitri is probably asleep right now and it would be really cool if I can invade his dreams.

"Dream walking." I answer. Adrian nods his head.

"Okay, well, the first time I did it, it was by accident. I went into my mother's dreams. All you have to do is think about the person and open your mind up to them. And when you connect with the person's mind, you have to imagine a place for you to meet in the dream world." I nod my heat at Adrian. That doesn't sound to hard. I close my eyes and focus on the instruction that Adrian gave me.

Dimitri.

His laugh, his eyes, his body, his hair.

Dimitri.

"Wow, it worked." I nearly yell as I stand in Dimitri's room. Dimitri stands up from the bed and looks at me.

"What is going on? How did you get in Roza?" I attack Dimitri with a hug. We fall back onto his bed.

"I'm in your dreams. I did it." Dimitri stokes my hair and smiles at me.

"I'm proud of you Rose. I knew you would be able to do it." I kiss Dimitri on his lips three times.

"I control all the elements." Dimitri nods his head.

"Yes Roza, you are one of a kind." Dimitri caresses my cheek with the back of his hand. The dream starts to fade slowly around us. I open my eyes and look at Adrian.

"I did it." I state. Adrian smiles and nods his head.

"I know. Your aura showed gold. Spirit users' auras go gold when they use their power." Adrian tell me a few more stuff about dream walking, stuff that I found useless or already knew.

"Well, Little Dhampir, I need my beauty sleep. So good night." I hug Adrian and skip back to my room. today was a good day.

 _Rose is becoming more and more special as the day goes by. Hope you liked it._


	23. Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23

It's quiet out tonight.

Maybe to quiet.

"Don't look so paranoid. I don't think they will attack tonight." I look at Kira for a few seconds before I concentrate on my surroundings again.

"It's the last night of the field test. This is when I would strike full force." Kira rolls her eyes. I turn around when I hear a noise behind one of the trees. Why did Kira want to go to the party tonight? A bunch of Royals arranged a party in the woods for tonight and obviously their novices needs to accompany them. Kira ducks underneath a low hanging branch. I follow her with an uneasy feeling in my gut. The light from the bonfire and the music comes into view. A few beer-kegs are stacked near a tree to our left. If the guardians find out about this, they are not going to be happy. Christian and Eddie walk towards us. Eddie looks to be just as tense as I am.

"Not you to Rose. Relax and grab a drink." Christian wraps his arm around my shoulder. He smells heavily of beer.

"I will, later." I lie.

"How much have you had to drink? You stink." I ask his after a few seconds of silence. Christian brings his shirt to his nose.

"Not as much as you think. Some dude spilled his beer on me. Now if you will excuse me and Kira for a moment." Christian takes Kira's hand and leads her to the keg. Eddie and I scan our environment. Most of the people here are drinking, even the other novices on duty. I just hope tonight goes smoothly. Half of these idiots will fail if the guardians attack tonight. Eddie taps my elbow.

"Do you also have this feeling, like something is going to happen tonight?" I nod my head at him. I'm glad that I'm not the only paranoid one here. Two dhampir guys stumble towards us, Drake and Charlie, I think.

"We did it, guys!" Charlie yells at the top of his lungs. I roll my eyes at him.

"Relax will ya, its over." Drake punches my shoulder lightly. I shake my head at him.

"No, tomorrow it will be over. We are actually still on duty." Drake looks at his watch.

"Well what is three hours going to matter."

"Three hours could…" My respond is cut off by a piercing yell. I look for the source of the sound. A moroi girl is being dragged away from the party by a black figure. I just knew something was going to happen. Eddie and I run over to Kira and Christian.

"We need to get you guys to safety." Eddie and I watch as about twenty black figures invade the party.

"I got it." Christian lights a circle around him and Kira. Eddie and I pull out our stakes and join the fight. We stick close to our moroi's. All around us novices are failing. I see Stan run towards Eddie. I tackle him to the ground just before he could reach Eddie. We struggle for a while on the ground, but I get the upper hand and stake him. I look around. We are losing this battle. The 'strigoi' are out numbering us greatly. Eddie stakes a female guardian and she steps back, out of the fight.

"We need to run. They are wining." I yell at Eddie. He nods at me and we jump into action. We grab all the moroi we can and make a break for it. Eddie runs in the front of the group and I cover the back. We have about twelve moroi between us. I just hope any novice left saw us running and that they follow us. Heavy footsteps follow us. I turn around just in time to see Dimitri jump for me. We roll on the ground. I look up to see that Eddie didn't stop. He has to make sure the moroi are safe.

"No magic." Dimitri warns me. I reach for my stake, it fell to the floor when he tackled me. Dimitri sees what I want to do. He kicks the stake away. I want to groan, but he tackles me again. His hands are trying to find my throat. I need to get him off of me. I kick him in the family jewels, making him roll off of me. I reach for the stake and jump onto him.

"Night, night." I bring the stake down on his chest. The sound of cheering makes me look up. All the guardians and the novices watched as I took Dimitri down. We stand up and face the crowd. Alberta steps toward us.

"Good job, Rose. You really impressed me tonight. When you saw that fighting was not going to work, you and Eddie took the moroi to a safe place." I thank her for her kind words. Dimitri looks proud beyond words.

"As for the rest of you." Alberta turns toward the group of drunk teens behind her.

"Drinking on duty is not permitted. You put the lives of your moroi and your own lives on the line. All of you will be punished. Go back to your rooms. Now!" Even though I didn't part take in the drinking, I felt like she scolded me.

"I'm so proud of you Roza." Dimitri pats my shoulder.

"Thank you. For a second there, I thought I was going to lose." His hands came very close to my neck at one point in our fight.

"Yeah, I thought I had you. You are an exceptional guardian." I walk back to my room with a wide smile on my face. Christian, Kira and Eddie bombard me with questions as soon as I enter the room.

"So, we did good?" Eddie asks as a smile forms on his face. I nod my head at him.

"Yeah we did. Now leave, I need sleep." Eddie and Christian leave after a few more minutes of questioning.

Xxx

"We would like to award you three for last night." Eddie, Greyson and I stand in Alberta's office. She called us in the morning because we were the only ones who didn't drink at the party and we stayed sharp. Greyson helped Eddie after Dimitri attacked me.

"There is only two weeks left of school. The rest of your class will continue to have classes, but you three can have this time off as a reward. But remember, in the real world there is no time off. Enjoy this time." Alberta dismisses us, but I stick around to speak with her about my magic lessons.

"You still have to do them, but after that you can do what you want." I nod my head at her and thank her. I turn to the door to leave, but she calls me back.

"Happy Birthday Rose. I am so proud of you." She hands me a wrapped gift. I look at her shocked. I didn't expect this from her. I open the gift.

"Oh, Alberta, thank you so much." I look at the framed picture of the two of us when I was seven. She has been with me since I started my journey with this school. I hug her tightly before I leave her office. As I walk to the cafeteria, I get a lot of birthday wishes.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…" I shake my head as Adrian, Christian, Eddie, Kira and Mia sing to me. I sit down in front of the delicious looking cupcakes.

"Thank you, guys this means the world to me." I pick up a cupcake and stuff it into my mouth. Vanilla, my favourite. A weird sensation in my stomach appears. It must be Lissa. I need to see if she is at the wards. I excuse myself from the table and sprint to the wards. The spot where we always meet up.

"Hey birthday girl." A smile breaks out on my face when I see Lissa. She is glowing like an Angel.

"Hey." I reply a bit out of breath. I sit down on the big rock.

"I know I said that we need to stop seeing each other, but I just needed to tell you happy birthday." A sob rises in my chest. I wish she was here.

"I miss you." I cry. Lissa sits down next to me on the rock. She rubs her hand on my back, but I can't feel a thing.

"I know, but I will always be in your heart. Now for the good. I have a gift for you." I look up at her. I haven't thanked her for the first gift yet.

"I just want to thank you first. What you gave me, I can't even begin to thank you enough." Lissa smiles at me.

"As long as you are happy. That is enough. Now I bought your gift a while ago. Look in my velvet pink jewellery box. You will know what it is when you see it. And have Adrian charm it. It will help with the darkness." I reach out to touch Lissa's cheek. I know I won't feel her, but I just need to be closer to her.

"Thank you Lissa. Go and be happy now. Say hi to your family for me." Lissa nods her head and disappears.

"Rose? What is going on?" I turn around to see Dimitri. He looks very confused. I jump off of the rock and walk towards him.

"I can see Lissa. Well, not anymore. She needs to be with her family now. I know it sounds crazy. Just trust me." Dimitri nods his head. He holds out his hand for me to take. This reminds me of the first time I saw Lissa here.

"So, I heard that it's someone's special day. Happy birthday my Roza." Dimitri pulls me in for a heated kiss. I respond immediately. He pulls away too soon for my liking.

"Meet me at the cabin tonight." I nod my head at him. The cabin has turned into out escape. Our relationship's save haven.

"Belikov, have you seen Rose. Over." I nearly jump ten feet at the sudden sound coming from Dimitri's radio. Dimitri laughs at me before he answers.

"Her mother is looking for her. Send her to the dhampir lounge. Over and out." Well, well, well a visit from my mother on my birthday. This is unexpected.

"I heard, I will see you tonight Comrade." I blow him a kiss and head to the dhampir lounge. But I need to stop at the storage units first. I'm dying to see what Lissa got me. I open the storage unit with a heavy heart. Christian and I still need to go through all her stuff to see what we want to keep and what goes to charity. I look through a box marked _make-up and jewellery._ The velvet box is right at the top. I find a smaller box covered in roses. This must be it. I open the box and gasp at what is inside. A beautiful heart locket with a picture of me and Lissa inside. _You always have my heart_ is engraved in the back of the locket. I hug the locket to my chest and let the sobs take over my body. She really is my guardian Angel. Why did she have to go? I need her.

 _You can make it go away. You know how._ The voice is back. I stand up and wipe the tears from my eyes. I need to get a handle on this darkness. Now, but first I need to see my mother.

 _Enjoy..._


	24. Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

I walk in the dhampir lounge to find my mother and some man sitting on the couch. They are talking in a hushed tone. This must be it. This man is my father. I'm meeting my father today. I clear my throat to get their attention. My mother jumps up and walks towards me with the man close behind her.

"Happy birthday Rosemarie. I got you something." I take the small gift box out of her hand. She looks at me anxiously as I open the small box. I stare at the gorgeous lapis-lazuli earrings in the box. The bright blue stands out against the white cushion in the box. Its simple and elegant.

"It is a family heirloom. The only one we have. Maybe you can give it to your daughter one day." I surprise her by hugging her. After a second of hesitation, she wraps her arms around my shoulders. This is the first time a hug between us didn't feel forced or wrong. This was what I always imagined a mother's hug should be.

"Okay, there is another thing. Rosemarie, this is your father Ibrahim Mazur." I look at the man, my father, from head to toe. We have the same hair and eyes. His skin is tanned, which is uncommon for a moroi. He is tall like all moroi. His fashion sense is what freaks me out a bit. Who wears a nice charcoal suit with a blood red scarf? Who wears scarfs anymore? Well, it does look kind of good on him. It sort-of fits him. He stretches out his right hand for me to shake.

"I have waited for this day for so long. You are even prettier in person. It's nice to meet you Rosemarie." I shake his hand and nod my head.

"Call me Rose, please. It's nice to meet you to… uhm… Mr Mazur?" He laughs and pats my hand three times before he lets it go.

"I know this must feel very strange, but you don't have to call me that." I raise both my eyebrows at him.

"Then what am I supposed to call you?" I ask. My mother scolds at me for some reason, but Ibrahim holds up his hand to stop her.

"It's a reasonable question Janine. How about we start with Abe and then, maybe, in the future, we can consider dad." I nod my head at him. That sounds fair. And I too, thought my question was reasonable. An awkward silence falls between the three of us. I feel like I should say something, but what? What can I say to the two of them. I hardly know them.

"How do you think the field test went?" My mother asks me. Abe looks at me intensely.

"It went okay, I guess. The magic classes are going well to." I answer. My mother raises one eyebrow. I guess she doesn't know about the magic. Abe looks confused as well.

"Apparently I am more special than we thought. I have access to all the elements. I have been taking classes to control them." My mother looks deep in thought. This must be weird for her. She gave birth to a total freak.

"Well, I always knew my daughter would be one of a kind." Abe laughs lightly. My mother looks at him and shakes her head.

"I asked the Headmistress if we could take you out for dinner tonight. She agreed. As long as your guardian comes along and if you want to go." I nod my head at him. This could be fun. As long as Dimitri and I keep our distance. I really don't want my mother to find out about our relationship just yet.

"Okay, you can go and enjoy the rest of your day. Meet us at guest housing around eight." I watch as my mother and Abe exit the dhampir dorm. I wonder if Dimitri knows about tonight. He didn't say anything. He and I actually arranged a date in the cabin. I need to find him. I head into the direction I last saw him. I hope he is still lurking around the edge of the wards. I spot him crouched down near a tree. He looks deep in thought. Something about the tree caught his interest. I take this as the perfect opportunity to jump on him. I still need to land a surprise attack on him. I get ready to pounce and wait a few seconds more. It's now or never. I take him down to the ground and laugh at his shocked face.

"I did it!" I cheer. Dimitri just shakes his head with a small smile on his lips.

"What is my reward?" I ask. Dimitri pushes me off of him lightly and stand up. He helps me up as well.

"Later Rose. What are you doing out here?" I frown a little at his response.

"I wanted to ask you something. Do you know about the dinner tonight?" Dimitri nods his head.

"Yes, I just heard about it. Your mother wants to take you out and I need to accompany you." I smile and nod my head. Oh, so he doesn't know about my father. This is going to be a shock to him.

"Yeah, well, I will let you get back to what you were doing." I turn around to walk away, but Dimitri grabs my hand and pulls me towards him. He kisses me lightly on my lips.

"I will see you later Roza." I walk back to the dhampir dorms on cloud nine.

Xxx

"We are late Rose." Dimitri says for the fifth time as we make our way to guest housing. I roll my eyes at him as I try to get my arm into my jacket. I may have taken a little longer to get ready than I thought I would. I just wanted to look perfect for tonight. I pull on the simple black dress I chose and look down at my nude pumps.

"You look beautiful Rose, why are you so nervous?" I shrug my shoulders. I really don't know why, but I am.

"Who is with your mother?" Dimitri asks me when we reach my mother and Abe, his back is towards us. I smile at Dimitri.

"You are late Rose." My mother comments when she hugs me. Abe and I stare at each other before I give him a one-handed hug.

"She is fashionably late Janine. You look beautiful Rose." I thank him and turn to Dimitri. He greets my mother with a nod which she returns.

"Abe, this is my guardian…"

"Dimitri Belikov. I know him." Abe interrupts me. Dimitri looks a shade paler. He shakes Abe's hand.

"Mr Mazur, its nice to see you again." My jaw nearly hits the ground. They know each other? How?

"His family and I go way back. I met him when he was just a little boy." Abe explains to me. Dimitri looks a little bit uncomfortable. Was Abe a bad guy in Dimitri's stories?

"That is… something. Well Abe is my father." I turn to Dimitri. He looks even more uncomfortable now. His eyes could almost fall right out of his head.

"Really?" Abe smiles at Dimitri in a dark way.

"Yes, my only daughter." The way Abe says that makes me nervous. Does he know something? No, he couldn't know anything.

"Shall we go, we are already late." My mother asks. I send her a thankful look as we get into the SUV. The drive is long and filled with silence. The radio is the only sound in the car.

"Where are we going to eat?" I ask. My mother looks at Abe. I guess she isn't in the loop. Abe just taps his nose and smiles at us. I look over at Dimitri. He is just staring out of the window. I want to reach out and hold his hand, but I know I can't. Abe pulls up in front of a little pizza restaurant, Enzo's Pizzeria. I jump out of the car first.

"This is really where we are going to eat?" My mother asks as we walk into the restaurant. A waiter walks past me with a tray of milkshakes, that look like it comes out of a magazine.

"Hell yes." I answer my mother. Abe chuckles as another waiter leads us to a table in the back. The place isn't so busy.

"I thought that Rose would like it here." Abe says as we sit down. The waiter hands us our menus and leaves us to decide.

"Well you thought right." I smile at Abe. He looks proud of himself. I search for the milkshake selection in the menu.

"How do I choose?" I ask out loud. Everyone looks so good. The waiter comes back to our table after a few minutes. Everyone has given their order, they are just waiting for me.

"Oh, my goodness. Okay, give me a Ferrero Rocher super shake with two slices of the something meaty pizza and the double bacon with three cheeses. Thank you." The waiter repeats our orders before he leaves the table again. The silence from earlier in the car returns between the four of us.

"So, Abe, where do you live?" I ask. He looks at me.

"Well, I live wherever my business takes me. At the moment I live in Russia."

"Really? After graduation, Dimitri and I need to go to Russia." Abe lifts one of his eyebrows.

"We need to go and see a spirit user there." I explain. Abe nods his head slowly.

"Well, when you want to go, just let me know and I will send my jet for you." My jaw nearly falls open. He has a jet. His own jet.

"Okay, thank you." Abe reaches into his jacket pocket and hands me a wrapped box. I open it and nearly scream.

"Wow, this is to much." I examine the new iPhone XS Max, in matt black. The phone is made entirely out of glass.

"My number is already saved in the phone. I really want to stay in touch with you." I hug the phone to my chest.

"Thank you so much Abe." The waiter comes with our food and drinks. I dig into my milkshake and moan with pleasure. This is one amazing super shake. I catch Dimitri looking at me. I push the milkshake towards him.

"Want a taste?" Dimitri takes a sip and nods his head.

"It is very good." I pull the milkshake back and finish it off in record time. After the meal we head back to the SUV.

"Thanks for tonight." I say to Abe. He starts the car and we start the drive back to the Academy. I yawn and close my eyes. Sleep will do me good now. I wonder if Dimitri still wants to go to the cabin when we get back.

Xxx

Dimitri nudges my shoulder to wake me up. I lift my head off of his shoulder. We are back at the Academy.

"I need to go back to Russia tomorrow, but you can call me anytime. If you need something or if you just want to talk." Abe gives me a hug and smiles at me. I thank him for everything again. My mother hugs me as well.

"I am going with him to Russia. And the same counts for me. I am here if you need me." I greet them and them Dimitri and I make our way to the cabin. I can't wait for his birthday gift for me.

"I have something for you." Dimitri says as we enter the cabin. He walks over to the dining table and hands me a gift box. I open it quickly and gasp.

"Dimitri, this is so cool." I jump into his arms and hug him. I take the stake out of the box and inspect it.

 _My Roza_ is engraved at the top of the stake. I put the stake back in the box and kiss Dimitri. He leads me towards the bed. This is the perfect way to end the day.

 _Please review._


	25. Chapter 25

CHAPTER 25

The whole room is buzzing with anticipation. This is it. This is what we have been waiting for. I can see it on each face here in the room. We are all waiting on Alberta's last words. The words that will 'set us free' if you will. Some faces show impatience as well as excitement.

"I am very proud to announce the class of 2018." At Alberta's words the whole room erupts in cheers.

We did it.

We graduated from St Vladimir.

Well most of us did. My ecstatic mood takes a huge plunge when I start to think about Lissa and Mason. Both of them should be here, but thanks to me, they are not.

"We did it Rose!" Eddie tackles me into a bear hug. I wrap my arms around his shoulders and press my face into his neck to try and stop the tears. Three sets of arms join our hug. Kira, Christian and Mia cheer loudly in my ear as we hug. I fight back my tears when the Queen interrupts the celebration.

"I know that you are all elated, but I have some news that I need to make public knowledge. Rose and Kira." The Queen motions for us to join her on the stage. I grab Kira's hand and lead her up to the stage.

"After the tragic death of Vasilisa, we though the Dragomir line is gone. But by some miracle, the Dragomir line is still intact. Kira Valentine is the daughter of Eric Dragomir." The Queen waits for the shocked whispers in the room to quiet down. Then she drops the bigger bomb.

"And… We have recently learned that shadow kissed people are very special. Rosemarie Hathaway will take over Vasilisa's place as the Dragomir Princess." The whole room turns into chaos. Some people are shouting and other are too shocked to speak. The Queen places a small emerald and diamond tiara on my head. Some of the royal parents shouts at the Queen, asking if she has lost her mind.

"Quiet! If anybody wants to stand in Rosemarie's way, they will have me to deal with. Now that there are two Dragomir's, they will have a voice on the council. You are dismissed." The Queen turn towards me and pats my cheek softly. I have never seen her be this affectionate towards me. This is actually scary. Dimitri makes his way towards the stage.

"This is going to get crazy. Stay close to me, both of you." Kira latches herself onto my arm as we follow Dimitri out of the gym where the graduation ceremony was held. He leads us back to Kira's room. Christian, Eddie and Mia are waiting at the door for us.

"A Dragomir Princess?" Eddie asks as he point to the tiara on my head. I shrug and smile at him. Kira lets go of my arm and runs into Christian's open arms.

"Rose?" I turn around at the sound of my mother's voice. She and Abe walk towards me.

"I'm so proud of you." She hugs me tightly. Abe hugs me when my mother lets me go.

"I'm sure you are going to hold the Dragomir name high." Abe looks a bit bothered by that fact. I raise both my eyebrows at him.

"I just thought that if you change your last name, it would be to Mazur. But I know when the bigger picture is more important." I nudge his shoulder lightly.

"Don't worry, I will still be your daughter. Even if I change gender." Abe laughs at my joke. His laugh is warm and fatherly.

"I'm sorry to interrupt Mr Mazur. You said that if Rose ever wanted to go to Russia that she should ask you." Abe nods his head at Dimitri. I look at him in confusion. Where is he going with this?

"There is a very powerful spirit user in Russia that Rose needs to see. The Queen said she can go as soon as she graduated." I look at Abe again. I almost forgot about the Russian trip that we need to take. Abe nods his head.

"Well, I am going back to Russia tomorrow, if you are ready, you can leave with me." I hold up my hand before Dimitri can answer for me. I hope this doesn't become a habit. Sometimes the guardians arrange all the traveling for their moroi.

"I wanted to ask my friends if they can join me. I think Adrian would benefit from this just as much as me." Abe nods again.

"Well, just let me know. We will leave you to celebrate. Congratulations Rose." Abe kisses my forehead and leaves with my mother behind him. I look at Dimitri.

"Don't make this a habit." He raises one eyebrow at me.

"I'm not going to be like the other moroi. I can arrange things myself, Guardian Belikov." Dimitri nods his head.

"Okay, sorry Princess. It won't happen again." I punch his shoulder and roll my eyes.

"The new Dragomir Princess in the flesh. What an honour." Adrian bow dramatically in front of me.

"Whatever. Let's go inside. I have news." Dimitri excuses himself. Apparently, he has somethings he needs to take care of. Adrian follows me into Kira's room.

"Okay guys. I need to go to Russia to see a spirit user. Who wants to go?" I ask.

"The Queen wants me at Court. She said I need to get settled in." Kira runs her fingers through her hair.

"Then I am going to stay with Kira." Christian shrugs apologetically at me. I roll my eyes. Adrian lifts his hand high.

"I'm in." I look at Eddie. He shakes his head.

"I need to get my assignment. That ceremony is in an hour. So, it depends who I get." I nod at him. I feel bad that he is going to have to face the assignment ceremony alone.

 _You should feel bad. You took Mason away from him and now you are leaving him to fight for himself._

I try to block out the voice. It doesn't sound like Lissa anymore. The voice is unknown to me.

"Adrian, can I talk to you outside?" Adrian and I head out of the room. I hold up the locket Lissa gave me for my birthday.

"I need you to charm this for me. To keep the darkness away. can you do that?" Adrian takes it from my hands and nods his head. He closes his eyes. A gold ring forms around him as he uses his magic. I'm working really hard on seeing auras.

"I think this should hold until we see that spirit user." Adrian helps me to put the locket on. I feel lighter and bubbly as soon as the locket is on me. I feel like myself.

"Thank you. I have to go somewhere. If they ask, just say you don't know." Adrian nods his head.

"But I really don't know." I smile at him and walk away. I head to the small cemetery we have on campus. Its at the back of the church, out of sight. I asked them to bury Lissa next to Mason, but they denied. Lissa's body was shipped to the Royal Court and she was buried with her parents in the Dragomir crypt. But Alberta did put a headstone for her up next to Mason. I sit on the small bench in front of their graves.

"I wish you guys could be here. You should be here, and I should be lying where you are now. This is so unfair." I wipe away the tears that roll over my cheek.

"We were supposed to take on the world together. Now I'm here alone and you two are gone. And poor Eddie." I have to stop talking as a sob break through me.

"He shouldn't be going through the assignment ceremony alone. Mase, you and I should be there with him. Laughing at whoever gets Jesse. And then I should be assigned to Lissa. Things just feel like they are falling apart on important days like this." I wipe the tears away again.

"I'm not going through it alone, Rose." I turn around to see Eddie standing behind me. He sits down next to me on the bench.

"You and Mase will be with me. In here." He points towards his heart. I lay my head on his shoulder.

"I know it feels like everything is going to shit sometimes, but just remember, the ones we love will always be a part of us. They live on in our heart." I look up at Eddie without taking my head off of his shoulder.

"When did you become so wise?" Eddie laughs.

"I don't know. I guess graduation changes you." I roll my eyes at him and look towards the graves again.

"I just miss them so much." Eddie wraps his arm around my shoulder.

"I know, I do to." We sit in silence for a few minutes. Eddie stands up and pulls me up with him.

"I need to go to the ceremony and you can not be out here alone. People are mad about the whole Dragomir thing." Eddie taps the tiara. I forgot that I still have it on my head. I hug him once more before I head to Kira's room. I think a nice nap will do me good now.

Xxx

I take the stairs two at a time. My legs burn from the running. I glance at my phone again.

Shit.

I'm very late.

I push my legs to go faster. I should not have snoozed my alarm three times.

"Well look who decided to grace us with her presence." Adrian leans against the stairs leading to the airplane. I throw my duffle bag towards him, hitting the wind out of him.

"I know, I'm sorry." I say to my mother when she gives me a look. Dimitri and Abe come out of the airplane.

"All is set. Let's go." Abe motions for us to board the airplane. I pick a window seat near the wing. I hate flying. The headache and the ghost sightings are not my favourite. Dimitri sits down on the seat next to me. I stop the attendant as she walks past us.

"Do you have a sleeping pill?" She nods her head and walks to the back of the plane to get the pill. Dimitri looks at me questionably.

"It's for the headache and the ghosts." I explain when the attendant returns with the pill and a water bottle. I swallow the pill and snuggle deeper into the seat. I close my eyes and wait for sleep to take me under.

"Rose, wake up." I feel someone poking my cheek. I open my eyes and glare at the person next to me. Adrian pokes my cheek again. I swat away his hand and stand up. I follow Adrian out of the airplane. My mother looks at us as we approach them.

"Where is Dimitri?" I ask.

"Right behind you." I turn around at the sound of his voice. He smiles at me. I know this trip is supposed to be educational, but I'm super excited. And really nervous. Dimitri's family wants to see us again. Last time I saw them, things went a bit haywire. I broke up with Dimitri and ran out of their room and then had that weird conversation with his grandmother before I was taken. My first impression sucked.

"Rose, I hope you understand why I declined to be Christian's guardian at the last minute." My mother pulls me to walk slower as we make our way to the car. We are out of ear shot from the rest of our group. Dimitri glances over his shoulder every now and then to look at us.

"I think Eddie will be more suitable for him and well…" My mother looks at Abe longingly. She wants to rekindle their love story. Well, I never thought I would see the day Janine Hathaway would choose love over duty. She gave up her previous assignment to be close to my father.

"Your father and I, well, I, we want to see if we can… we want…" I interrupt my mom by placing my hand on her arm.

"I understand. I hope you and him can work things out. And I hope you get your happy ending." My mother warps her arm around my shoulder and squeezes me tightly to her side. Abe looks over at us and smiles. He looks proud. I guess he is going to get the family he always wanted. I am too. I have always wanted a family with two parents who love me. Now I have it.

"I am sure Olena will butcher her son if she knows he was in Baia and he didn't visit. If Rose relieves you from your duties, then you can use the second car to visit your family." My father says to Dimitri when we reach the two black SUV's. Dimitri looks torn between staying with me and visiting his family.

"Well, I really wanted to see his family again, last time I made a fool of myself and I just want to fix that." I wink at Dimitri. My father nods his head.

"Okay then we will meet you at the hotel later tonight." Adrian gets into the first SUV with my mother and Abe. Dimitri holds the passenger door open for me.

"Can't I drive?" Dimitri shakes his head. I pout at him and give him my best puppy-dog eyes.

"I know where we are going, you don't. Get in." I fake a shocked gasp and put my hand over my mouth dramatically.

"How dare you talk like that to your charge Guardian Belikov?" Dimitri rolls his eyes but can't hold back his smile. This is going to be fun. I jump into the car and take charge over the radio.

Xxx

As we near Dimitri's old house, my nerves start to take over. I know he said that they didn't take any offense with the last visit, but I just need to make a good impression. Dimitri squeezes my hand as he shuts off the car. The house is very lovely. A wrap around porch gives the old Victorian house a warm feeling. I can just imagine Dimitri siting on the porch swing reading old westerns as a child. Brown hair hanging in his eyes.

"Don't be so nervous Roza. Everything will be fine." I nod my head at him, but still my nerves are on high. I follow Dimitri out of the car, to the front door. I hold my breath as he knocks on the door. Olena opens the door with a big smile on her face. She speaks to Dimitri rapidly in Russian. I stand to the side and let them reunite in peace. The commotion at the door caused the rest of his family to join us at the door. I observe how each family member keeps physical contacts with Dimitri, as if he would just disappear if they didn't touch him. He smiles at each one of them. Letting them know how special they are to him. Paul jumps up into his arms and hugs him fiercely. I can't wait to give this to him. Not now, but soon. Dimitri points at me, causing all the Belikov's to look at me. I suck in a major breath and take a few steps forward.

"Hello. If it is okay with you guys, I would like to start over. My name is Rose Dragomir."


	26. Chapter 26

CHAPTER 26

It took us two hours to catch up on everything that happened since we last saw them. All the Belikov's, except Yeva, stared at me in awe. Paul grabs my hand and tugs me down to his level.

"Can I show you my tree-house, Princess Roza?" I nod my head and follow him to the back yard.

"You can just call me Rose." I tell him as we climb the small steps up the tree. Paul looks down at me and smile.

"Could I call you Aunty Roza? I like that better than just Rose." I reach the landing and stand p straight. Paul is still looking at me, waiting for an answer.

"I guess. We will just have to ask your grandma or mom if that's okay." He nods his head, making his longish brown hair bob. He shows me around the small tree-house, all his toys come with a small story. Some of his stories sounds very fictional, but entertaining.

"And this was Uncle Dimka's." He holds up a very old leather cowboy hat. I laugh at the thought of Dimitri wearing the hat in public. I run my fingers over the fading leather.

"Uncle Dimka gave it to me before he left. He told me to look after it and take care of it." I place the hat on my head and nod at Paul.

"Howdy partner." Paul giggles like a maniac. I grab one of Paul's fake revolvers and point it at him.

"Hold up you're hands little mister. You are being charged for being the cutest little man in the country." Paul lets out a squeal before he makes a run for the stairs. I give him a ten second head start before I run after him. I chase Paul all the way into the kitchen. He runs to Dimitri and hides behind his back.

"Surrender your mini me Mr. Belikov or face my wrath." I try my best cowboy accent. Dimitri looks at me like I have two heads. Olena glances at us every few seconds with a smile on her face. Dimitri lifts his hands as if to surrender, but he surprises me by grabbing the gun out of my hand and pointing it at me.

"Run partner, she doesn't stand a change against the two of us." I laugh at Dimitri's ridiculous accent. I hold my hands up in surrender as Dimitri walks closer to me. He tips the hat back with two fingers to see my face better.

"Has nobody ever told you not to mess with another man's hat, little lady?" I try to grab the gun like he did a few moments ago, but as always, Dimitri is faster than me. He pins both my hands behind my back in one movement.

"But it looks much better on you." Dimitri whispers in my ear. I send a glance in Olena's direction. She is too busy with the bread in the oven to hear us. I turn my face towards his and kiss his cheek. I break free from his grip while he is distracted and take the gun back. Dimitri charges at me again, but Olena claps her hands.

"Not in the kitchen. Dimka, go and tell everyone that the food is ready. Will you help me set the table Roza?" Olena holds out a stack of plates. I take the plates and silverware and walk to the dining table. I take the hat off and place it on the table. Olena brings the glasses and sets them next to the plates. She sends me curious glances every now and then.

"You and Dimka… It seems that there is more than just a guardian-charge relationship between you." I stop what I'm doing and look at her with wide eyes. Should I tell her? I don't even know if Dimitri wants his family to know. Can we tell the world now or should our relationship still be kept to ourselves?

"Well, we are friends as well. Dimitri has been a very solid rock for me to lean on since I met him." Olena shakes her head with a knowing smile on her face.

"No that is not it either. But that's okay, everyone has a right to keep secrets." I clear my throat and continue setting the table. Are we that obvious? If so, then we will need to keep our distance. I hate this. In school it was a must but now we just need to keep up appearances. I wish we could just have an open relationship.

"Something smells delicious mama." Viktoria walks into the room, sniffing the air. Dimitri and his other sisters walk in behind her. Paul grabs the hat off of the table and stick it onto his head. Everyone stands behind a chair and waits. For what I don't know. Yeva walks in slowly and stands at the head of the table. She looks over her family and smiles. Pride shines brightly in her eyes. When she sits down, everyone else does to. I stare at Yeva in awe. She holds so much respect from her family. Even though she is ancient, and she isn't technically the head of the house, they treat her as if she is. A sharp poke on my shoulder brings my attention to Dimitri.

"Try this pelmeni. You will love it." I accept the bowl from him and dish up some of the food. Everything I take tastes great, much to my surprise. I always thought that Russian food would be disgusting, but I guess I was wrong.

Xxx

"Yeah, we will be at the hotel in an hour." I answer my mother over the phone.

"Adrian asked if you could stop at a store to get him some snacks. Apparently, the hotel isn't up to standard." I can practically hear my mother rolling her eyes. She gives me a list of all the things Adrian wants. I hang up the phone and walk to the living room where Olena, Yeva and Dimitri are sitting.

"Adrian wants us to stop at a store to get some things." Dimitri glances at his watch then he sighs.

"Then we should probably head out." Olena offers to walk us to the door, but Yeva steps in and tells us that she will walk us.

"Dimka go and wait in the car, but first give me a hug." Dimitri does as he is told and leaves us after he gives her a hug.

"Rose, sometimes things happen for a reason. It is to show us how strong we are. Just remember how strong you are." She places her hand over my heart. With a small nod, she turns on her heels and shut the front door. All the way to the store I thinks about her words. Is she talking about me being crowned a Dragomir Princess? She probably thinks I have enough power now to help the dhampirs in need. But that is obvious. I may be moroi now, but I will never forget about the needs of the dhampirs.

"I hate driving here at night. This quick stop-store is infested with strigoi this time of the night. Just be on high alert Princess." I shove Dimitri's shoulder and glare playfully at him. I'm always on high alert. Dimitri locks the car and looks around at the total deserted parking lot. I think, aside from us, the clerk inside the store is the only person awake. Dimitri comes to the same conclusion as he extends his hand towards me. I take his hand excitedly and walk close to his side. A very loud wolf-whistle catches our attention. Four strigoi men stand a few feet away from us. Dimitri and I were both so wrapped up in being able to hold hands, that we didn't pay attention to our surroundings. I could kick myself for being so stupid. The look on Dimitri's face agree with me. We stand back against back as the four strigoi form a circle around us.

"Remember my first lesson. Don't hesitate and run when you get the chance." I nod my head slightly, but I know deep down that I will never run if Dimitri needs me. I will fight until my last breath.

"Aw, now don't tell the pretty girl to run. She looks like great fun." The strigoi closest to me says with a laugh. Dimitri literally growls at him. I try my best to stand firmly and not look intimidated. Odds were not so good. Each strigoi looked to be dhampir before they turned, meaning they most likely have guardian training.

"If you give the pretty lady up, we might let you go big guy." Dimitri saw this as the perfect time. He struck out to the guy closest to him. The strigoi was taken by surprise. I throw a couple of fire balls at the two in front of me. To say they are shocked would be a major understatement. But it did just piss them off more. Dimitri makes quick work of his two opponents as I distract my two with fire and earth magic. Dimitri tackles one to the ground and they start to wrestle. I get distracted for a split second, but it is enough for the other strigoi to take me down. A scream escapes my lips as he digs his fangs into my neck. The strigoi gets tackled off of me a second later. Dimitri yells at me to run as he and the strigoi roll around on the floor. I want to stay, but I can see that staying is only distraction Dimitri. I take off into the direction of the car as fast as I can. I can almost touch the hood when two arms grab me from behind. The strigoi Dimitri fought earlier hisses at me as he wraps his hand around my neck. Dimitri's stake is nestled into the strigoi's chest, just not deep enough to kill him. I must have distracted Dimitri.

"Oh guardian. Look who I have here." Dimitri stops fighting the other strigoi to look at us. Fear for my life shines brightly in his eyes.

"Kill him Emmet." Before I can utter a word, the strigoi behind Dimitri reaches out and snaps his neck. Dimitri's eyes roll back into his head as he falls to the floor. Images of Lissa's death flashes into my mind. Now it's mixed with images of Dimitri to. I can see both of them lying on the floor next to each other.

Lifeless.

Dead.

I summon up every ounce of darkness I have in me to fight on my behalf. It feels like everything happens in slow-motion. I elbow the stake deeper into the strigoi behind me, finishing what Dimitri started. As I walk to the strigoi that killed Dimitri, I see fear creep on his face. Good he should be scared. He should be dead scared. I deliver a series of fatal kicks and punches, just to make him hurt. I set my hand on fire and place it on his head. His screams satisfy my dark-side. I watch as I cremate him from his head to his feet. Once all the flames, fighting and screams die down, I fall to my knees beside Dimitri. I shake his shoulders. He needs to come back. He has to. I need him. I place my hands on his chest and beckon up spirit magic. At first the magic refuses to come out. I feel drained.

 _"_ _Rose, sometimes things happen for a reason. It is to show us how strong we are. Just remember how strong you are."_

Yeva's words flood back into my mind. I'm strong. I can do this. I push past the magical blockage and reach for every emotion I ever felt for Dimitri Belikov. I feel the hot and cold sensation of spirit as the magic leaves my body and enters his. I manage to stay awake long enough to see Dimitri open his brown eyes.


	27. Chapter 27

CHAPTER 27

"She's awake." I hear Dimitri's voice a second before I open my eyes. My mother walks closer to the bed I'm laying on.

"Rosemarie?" I drag my eyes away from Dimitri to look at my mother. It looks like she has aged ten years all of a sudden. I raise both my eyebrows at her, waiting to hear why everyone was staring at me like this.

"She wants to know why everyone is staring at her. Rose, do you remember what happened before you blacked out?" I let it slip that Dimitri just said what I was thinking and try to gather my memories from before I blacked out. Images of red eyes, Dimitri lying on the floor, hot and cold flashes and fire flood my mind. I jump up from the bed and grab Dimitri's face in my hands. I brought him back. He died and I saved him. But does that mean that we are connected like Lissa and I was?

"Yes, we are Rose." I stare at him with shock. Now I'm going to know how Lissa felt, having someone in my head. And it's not just anyone, it's the man I love.

"I can't believe this." I say more to myself than to anyone else.

"Now Guardian Belikov really will be the best to guard you." My father says as he claps his hand on Dimitri's shoulder.

"I will give my life to her Mr Mazur. And I have something I need to tell you all. Rose and I… we love each other, and we decided that we want to be with each other." I nearly choke on my own spit. I did not expect that and by the looks on everyone's faces, they didn't either. Well Olena has a small smile on her lips, like she knew deep down that we are in love. My mother looks outraged. She looks at Dimitri and then at me.

"It's true." I simply say as I take a step closer to Dimitri and entwine my hand with his. My mother clenches her fist so hard that her knuckles turn white. My father takes her clenched hand and folds his hands over it.

"Can't you see the love in their eyes, my love? We shared the same look many years ago." My mother drags her eyes away from us and looks at my father. Her eyes hold longing for him. A silent conversation passes between them and then Abe turns to us again.

"But this doesn't mean that you will get off free. What do you think about a little hunting trip with Belikov, my dear?" Abe directs his question towards my mother while he stills looks at Dimitri.

"As long as I can come along." I stare at my parents with wide eyes. No way in hell am I going to let Dimitri go on a hunting trip with these two trigger happy people.

"I will be fine Roza." Dimitri whispers in my ear when my parents look away from us. Olena claps her hands together and looks around the room.

"How about I whip something together while we wait for Oksana and Mark?" My mother offers to help Olena in the kitchen. I watch as they leave for the kitchen, Yeva disappears up the stairs and Abe and Adrian go into the living room. I turn to look at Dimitri.

"This is going to be weird." Dimitri nods his head. It going to be weird but exciting in a way.

Xxx

We stayed in Russia for three weeks and I spent every day with Oksana to further my spirit magic. Adrian joined in on my lessons and we learned a lot of things. Things I never thought was possible. As I grew with my magic, my relationship with Dimitri grew as well. He survived the hunting trip and he also earned the respect of my parents. He can't wait to start a family with me, but I told him that is on the back burner for now. I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a mom. I did agree to one thing though.

"Are you ready, little girl?" I turn away from the mirror and look at my father. He is dressed in a nice black suit. I nod my head and take his hand and let him lead me to the big French doors.

"You're all grown up now. You're becoming someone's wife now." I nod my head at my father again. I know what I'm doing and I'm not regretting one minute of my decision.

"I know Baba and I will be a good wife." Abe pats my hand and smiles.

"You just be you, he is the one who should be a good husband, otherwise I will take him on another hunting trip." The doors open before I can reply to my father.

There.

At the end of the alter is the man who holds my whole hart. I take him in with every step I take.

Yes.

I made the right decision.

Today I will start my life as Mrs Rosemarie Dragomir-Belikov.

 **And that is it for this story.**


	28. Chapter 28

**Good day Readers.**

 **I hope you enjoyed my writing so far. I posted an Original story on Wattpad and i would really love it if you could check it out. The story is about a new beginning, new love and witches. If you want to check it out it's called Descend into Darkness by me Angie Jordaan. If you did check it out and you liked it, feel free to leave a comment and tell me what you think.**

 **Thanks a million, Angie**


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